The Scientist
by Reioki
Summary: Severus Snape lives with a tragedy that has affected him for twenty years. Through the tellings of the past, we begin to learn that Severus was not always a tortured man. But the secret of his tragedy may be the key to winning the war.
1. Twenty Years

**Authors Note: **This is an idea that has been floating around in my head for awhile. I always wandered the possibilities of why Snape was the way he was, and I thought of the possibility of a tragic past, more specifically a girl. This is what I have so far. The story line is still progressing but I would absolutely love feedback, even if it's critical.

*Newly updated chapters.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter, however I do own the character, Ella Brady. I based the title of my fic off of the Coldplay song of the same name.

The Scientist

In the dungeons of Hogwarts, Severus Snape sat packing ingredients into boxes. He paced around the room at his usual quick pace slamming cupboards shut – then opening them again as he would suddenly remember an ingredient he needed. The potions master was a creature in the castle that could instill the feeling of defeat and fear all at once in a student simply by looking at them. But today, this usually intimidating man had a demeanor that would be more well suited to a griever at a funeral. For it was the potions master himself that had a posture of defeat as he stomped in the classroom and allowed his shoulders to sink down; as if he was carrying something much more heavy than the box in his hands. Snape's black eyes which demonstrated a smart wit and a razor sharp mind on any other day were clouded with a sadness because this day…was today.

The usually careful potions master carelessly dropped empty glass bottles into a box, not even shuddering at the sound of breaking glass. He walked towards his desk and indifferently began to throw parchment and quills into another box. Within an hour the whole lab was a wreck and the hated potions professor sat behind his desk with his head buried in his arms.

This was the scene Remus Lupin found when he walked through the door.

Without looking up, Snape said, "What do you want, Lupin? 

Lupin didn't answer, he merely leaned against the stonewall. After a minute Severus finally raised his head and glared at him. Or at least tried to. The glint of constant agitation in Snape`s eyes was gone replaced with something that only rarely graced his features. Sadness.

"You can't keep doing this to yourself." Lupin said sincerely.

"Not that it's any concern of yours but I resolved myself over Dumbledore's death long before I pointed my wand at him." Snape said coldly.

"I wasn't talking about Dumbledore."

Silence.

Lupin had expected Snape to scream at him to get out, but instead was surprised to find Snape staring at him. Not really at him…almost through him, it seemed.

Lupin continued, "I noticed the date…twenty years today. Severus you cannot keep going on like this. Ella wouldn't…"

"Don't you dare say her name!" Snape screamed, "You have no right!"

Lupin took a deep breath and chose his next words carefully. "I know you won't talk about it and I'm not asking you to, but if you change your mind you know where to find me. "

Snape was even more agitated at the man he had known so long…simply because he refused to quarrel with the potions master. Snape was aching for an argument or a fight or anything right now to keep his mind from returning to those tormenting thoughts which consistently burned his soul…but today of all days the burn turned to a scorch. Yet as harsh as he had been and as much as he had tried to get a rise out of Lupin the shaggy, tired looking man simply turned his back and walked towards the door.

But before Lupin left he said ever so softly without turning around, "I miss her too."

Snape didn't respond, he stared at his desk as he heard Lupin leave. After what seemed like forever he slowly walked to his living quarters.

XXXXXXXX

"This is bloody unbelievable…you can't be serious!" shouted Harry.

"Mr. Potter, you will do well to lower your voice when speaking. I don't care what is going on. You are still a student here at this school and you will act in a manner befitting one." Professor McGonagall said warningly to Harry.

When there was no more argument, she stated once again, "I don't care if you believe me or not. But the fact is that Professor Snape was under the strictest orders from Dumbledore to…do what he did." McGonagall still couldn't really bring herself to say it… _kill him_**. **The headmaster had been dead for nearly a month and McGonagall could still only allude to what had happened.

The grief wore heavy on everyone, but especially on the elder transfiguration professor.

One month…only four weeks and the war had just begun and now the Order of Phoenix had lost it's leader and the death eaters were no doubt celebrating.

Harry only looked at McGonagall; he couldn't even bring himself to nod in acknowledgement of the words she had just said. After a minute he merely stood straight said, "Good day Professor" and left the office.

McGonagall slumped in her chair. She buried her face in her hands and tried to ignore the tightness in her chest and the tears welling up in her eyes.

"Minerva you're wearing yourself down, they need to know that they can trust Severus." Minerva looked at the portrait leaning against the wall next to her chair.

" I was wandering when you were going to wake up." McGonagall looked at the portrait through teary eyes.

Dumbledore's portrait watched Minerva as she stood and proceeded to hang his portrait on the wall behind her desk. McGonagall stepped back and stared at the face of her former colleague. The image was his but then it wasn't. There was no more twinkle in the eyes; no painter could truly capture it.

"I'm not you Albus, they may respect me but they worshipped you. You were their safe guard. As long as you were alive, someone was powerful enough to stand up to…him**."**

"Someone still is powerful enough to stand up to Voldemort, Minerva. Even if it is a bit more premature than anticipated."

"He is not ready Albus!"

"No…no he's not. Which is why he needs help. Help that only Severus will be able to provide." Dumbledore stated very matter of factly.

"He loathes the boy Albus, and the feeling is mutual with Potter. How do you expect them to work together without killing each other first?"

"Severus is a hard man but he is the only one who can help Harry. The only way Harry is going to be able to ensure the future is to first understand the past and to do this he must know Minerva. For too long we have not spoken of that night for not wanting to think about it, for Severus` sake, but enough is enough! No more secrets." And with that Dumbledore even from the grave appeared to have put his foot down.

XXXXXXXX

Severus made his way through the messy living room. His apartment was beginning to closely resemble the state of his lab. Books were thrown about, something that was odd for as avid a reader as Severus. Numerous scraps of parchment with quick notes as well as most of last weeks wardrobe all lay strewn on the floor. The house elves could have very well tidied up but most were so frightened of the potions master these days that they only tidied up after him when he requested them to do so.

Once inside the confinement of his bedroom, Severus muttered a simple spell and one of the floor boards popped up. He carefully lifted the board up to reveal a small wooden chest. Severus lifted it and sat at the windowsill. He threw open a window and let the night summer breeze in, it was a clear night with only a sliver of moon in the sky.

After a minute, he finally opened the chest and took out a long black ribbon. For a moment he merely held it in his hands, stroking it with his thumb and fore finger before he took out an old photo album. Severus opened the book, revealing a variety of photographs. Some were moving wizarding photos, while others stood in place. Some were colored photos and others were black and white. All were from the same place, twenty years ago. There were photos of the Slytherin quidditch team, proudly hoisting up the quidditch cup, few photos of school friends, a very stern family portrait, and then…her.

It was a colored muggle photograph. A pretty girl of 17 stared up at him. The girls light green eyes shone with mischief as she gave the camera a big smile. She had long brown hair and interestingly enough a black ribbon adorned her throat, tied tightly in a long bow on the side of her neck. _Ella…_

End Chapter 1


	2. Hope Is No Weapon

**Thanks to Black-Journal and Tambrathegreat for their reviews. As you may have noticed, the first chapter was a little confusing because the scenes in the story just bled together. I did have a break between scenes but this is my first time using so I am not used to the formatting. Hopefully in this chapter, it will work. Also, I am still looking for a beta tester! Onto the story and please send feedback! **

Chapter Two: Hope Is No Weapon

Remus had awoken the next morning to find a message from McGonagall. The letter had simply requested his presence in her office.

As Remus walked down the hall, he passed only a few students. It was summer and there were no classes to attend, however many students had no home or family to return to since the rise in death eater attacks over the past six months. Remus knew that with the death of Dumbledore only a month ago, fewer students would return to Hogwarts in the fall. There were too many parents who felt that Hogwarts was no longer safe without the powerful wizard keeping his watchful eye on their children.

_Perhaps they are right…it is not longer safe. _

Remus came to a stop in front of his destination and gave a swift knock on McGonagall's door. He suddenly found himself missing the large gargoyle at the base of Albus' office, but Minerva had refused to move into the late Headmasters office, it was too difficult for her.

Remus listened for the familiar, "Enter," before opening the door.

"Ah, Remus I'm happy you could join me this morning." Remus eyes however, were not on the woman before him, but on the portrait hanging directly behind her.

"Remus, my boy, how are you today?" The voice of Albus Dumbledore greeted him.

Remus raised his eyebrows. "Hello sir, I'm doing fine. Thank you."

Minerva smiled at Remus and then made her way to the door, "I'll leave you two alone, I'm sure there is much to speak of."

Remus nodded, never taking his eyes away from Dumbelore's portrait. When the door finally closed behind him, it was Dumbledore who first spoke.

"I know that the recent events that have come to light have left a great many questions for everyone. You among them, am I right Remus?"

Remus finally let out a breath that he hadn't realized he had been holding and finally managed to break his gaze from the portrait and stare at the floor.

"As usual Professor you are. I do have questions although I'm sure the biggest question is quite obvious. Why?"

The smiling face of the portrait suddenly became very serious.

"It was inevitable Remus, death is simply part of the cycle of life. Even though you do not see it now, Draco Malfoy's life was worth saving."

"I don't understand, sir."

"I had been slowly dying for some time, old wounds began to catch up with me. So, when I discovered that Draco Malfoy had been chosen to kill me and that his failure would result in his death, I made a decision. Severus not only saved Draco's life but he ensured Draco would have a chance at a real life, one where blood would not be on his hands. What Severus did may have put young Mr. Malfoy off the path he was headed. He may even have prevented Draco from going too far on that path, something I was unable to do for Severus."

"No…no Headmaster, we saw the price that had to be paid to bring Severus back from the dark side. Now you're dead trying to do the same for a boy who may still turn out just as his father did…a murderous son of a bitch to the end!" Remus nearly shouted.

Remus words hung in silence. It was a very rare occasion when Remus Lupin was anything but the picture of calm rationale, but this was too much.

"You may very well have died in vain…" Remus finally said in almost a whisper.

"An old man who had a long life for a young boy who's future is still so very uncertain, I can assure you I did not die in vain. You must not lose hope in people Remus, you of all people should understand that." Dumbledore stated resolutely

XXXXXXXX

Minerva McGonagall had learned a long time ago that when it came to Severus Snape, to never expect anything but sarcasm, coldness, cruelty when it came to asking him for favors. When it came to making potions or working for the Order however, the job done always exceeded expectation.

Minerva had taught Severus as a student, back then he was a quiet outcast. She had watched him grow from that quiet outcast into the cold, complicated man he is today. Severus was the product of a war. He had not had a happy childhood— who would with an abusive drunk for a father and a mother who wouldn't stand up against her husband. Severus as a first year always seemed nervous and twitchy around people, eventually he began to outgrow this but he always held a constant distrust for people.

Eventually he did make a few friends but no one he got close to…all save for one. One had been all it took to break Severus. Break was the only word to describe it, because when he lost her, Severus had truly become a broken man and had remained one ever since. It was true that he switched sides during the war and had helped in secretly fighting against his former master for nearly twenty-years, but it only hardened him.

So, over the years the faculty had learned two rules when it came to Severus Snape

1.) Don't challenge him

2.)Don't ask or talk about his past.

Even Albus treaded lightly when one or the other needed to be voiced. But now Albus was gone. Now she didn't know what to expect out of Severus as she walked towards his office.

Because she was about to break those rules.

XXXXXXXX

Harry had wandered around the castle and the grounds all day, feeling nothing but lazy and useless. There were some students at Hogwarts for the summer but Harry didn't know very many of them that well and the only time he really interacted was when a group of them would go out and play quidditch.

Hermione and Ron were both at the Burrow, an invitation (more like an insistent suggestion from Mrs. Weasley) had been extended to Harry like always, but this time he had declined to go. It was true that everyone had been strange since Dumbledore's death, the Burrow wasn't the same anymore. Harry also felt the need to avoid Ginny both for her sake and his own. Harry had even been distant with Hermione and Ron, despite the constant onslaught of owl's carrying their letters and care packages to him.

Ever since the night Dumbledore had died there were too many questions and too many things Harry needed to consider.

Right after the battle with the death eaters, Snape had not gotten far when he was apprehended by Tonks and Shacklebolt. But before he could be taken into the ministry, McGonagall had told the Order of Dumbledore's instructions for Snape to kill Dumbledore before Draco could. Dumbledore had left his memory of the meeting with Snape over the matter in his pensieve, which confimed McGonagall's claim.

After Dumbledore had died, all of his personal belongings particularly his personal journal and notes had been sorted through carefully by himself, McGonagall, Lupin, Hermione, and Moody. Dumbledore had been much closer to finding the remaining horcruxes than he had let on. A small team of Aurors that worked for the Order had been dispatched numerous times in the past few weeks and had already found two. Hermione had helped in locating the horcruxes and seemed rather confident that they would be able to find the others shortly. The difficult part had not turned out to be locating the horcruxes…but destroying them.

Dumbledore appeared to have been the only wizard capable of destroying the horcruxes because every spell, potion, hex, you name it had been attempted, not even a scratch was made on the damned things!

Not even Snape knew how Dumbledore had been able to destroy them and had never been present when had had done so in the past.

When Harry had gone and met Lupin earlier that afternoon and seen that Dumbledore's portrait was at last awake, they had questioned Dumbledore on exactly how he had done it.

_Harry had run to McGonagall's office after hearing the news first hand from the transfiguration professor herself. _

_Harry had all but knocked down the door as he found Lupin already in the room speaking with the portrait. _

_"Harry…" Lupin began but was quickly cut off._

_"How did you do it?!" said Harry breathlessly. _

_Dumbledore's portrait only looked worriedly at Harry._

_"How did you destroy the horcruxes?" clarified Harry. _

_When there still was no answer Harry went on._

_"We found your journals and using the notes from them we managed to track down some of the remaining Horcruxes and might even know where more are but it's useless since every possible thing we have tried to destroy them hasn't worked. Headmaster please…how did you destroy them?"_

_After what seemed like ages, Dumbledore's portrait spoke._

_"I'm afraid I don't have an answer for you, Harry." _

_This was not received well. _

_"What?! How can you be serious? You're telling me that first you order Professor Snape to kill you all to save Malfoy, and in doing so did nothing but injure the Order's chances of beating Voldemort and allowing one of his followers to live! Now you can't help because 'you don't have an answer' on how we can finally kill him! I'm sorry Professor I was under the impression you wanted us to win this war."_

_Before anything more could be said, Harry had left McGonagall's office. _

Harry sat looking out his window, he knew he had been rude and anxious but thinking of killing Voldemort was all he could think about, even when he slept all he dreamt of was Voldemort slaughtering thousands, all because he couldn't destroy him.

It was true, his mother's love had given him a protection against Voldemort, a defense. But now it seemed Voldemort had found ways around that defense and was building an army to take over the world and kill everyone in his path who dared to oppose him. His parents had died, Sirius had died, now Dumbledore was dead too. Time was running out and they couldn't win a war with no weapon.

XXXXXXXX

After Harry had stormed out of McGonagall's office, Lupin had wanted to go after him but thought better of it.

"I'm sorry Professor. He has changed, ever since you died he has become relentless in trying to find a way to kill the dark lord."

Dumbledore looked at Lupin.

"That boy has lost almost everything to Voldemort. He is afraid of losing more of those he loves. You cannot let him become obsessed with this or it will consume him, even if he does succeed."

"Professor, what do you mean you can't tell us how to destroy the horcruxes? Surely there must be a way." Remus asked desperately

"There is a way Remus but even if I were alive I could not explain it to you. Voldemort, though terrible, is one of the most powerful wizards history has ever seen. Those horcruxes are guarded with some of the oldest and darkest magic. I did not use spells or potions to destroy them because there is no spell or potion. How I destroyed them was instinctive to me alone. Even if I could explain it to you, it would not work. As I stated before I don't have an answer for you.

Before I died, however, I had an idea. Though as inadvertent as it may have been, I believe someone in the past may have almost succeeded in destroying Voldemort. I don't know how it was done but Minerva is looking into it. Right now the only advice I have is that you must find your own way and Harry must find his. He _is_ the best chance you have of winning."

XXXXXXXX

Minerva knocked on the door to Severus private lab. The door suddenly popped open slightly to allow her entrance. She walked through the door to find Severus at his desk making notes on some sort of experiment by the looks of it. She didn't say anything and merely waited for him to look up at her. After two minutes, he finally did.

"Minerva, to what do I owe this pleasure," Severus sarcastic tone echoed through McGonagall's ears.

_I can't lose my nerve, we need to know._

Minerva took a seat in front of Severus' desk despite the lack of invitation to do so.

"I'm not going to beat around the bush with you. I have never asked of it before and I know that it is a difficult subject to speak on but I need to know exactly what happened to Ella."

There were few times Minerva had ever seen Severus caught off guard, and this was most assuredly not what he had been expecting. His eyes shot up and looked directly at her when she had mentioned Ella's name and he then became very still.

"You bloody well know what happened." Severus said in a low dangerous tone.

"I know, she disappeared. But Severus she weakened Voldemort severely, nearly killed him from the sound of it. You were the only one there besides Voldemort and a few death eaters. What did she do, did she say a spell? Did she use avada kedavra? What?"

This was too much and Minerva knew it but she was in unknown waters here and there was no way to tip toe around the subject and get the answers she needed. Before she knew what was happening Severus had stood up so fast his chair fell to the ground with a loud crash behind him. There stood Severus with the most dangerous look in his eyes. His hands were shaking and he looked as if he would love nothing more than to throw Minerva across the castle.

" I think it's time you leave." Severus wasn't shouting but Minerva almost wished he was. His was almost a whisper and his hand looked like it would go to his wand any second. Minerva was starting to get just a little bit scared.

Minerva stood up and began to walk towards the door when she stopped and turned.

"Severus, I know you loved her. We all did. I would never ask this of you if I didn't think it could help us beat the dark lord. Ella was an incredibly powerful witch, more so than I think anyone realized, including herself. You may not know what Ella did exactly, but you knew her better than anyone else, you knew her perspectives on magic and how it could be used.

Potter almost killed the dark lord because of his mother's love, Albus was able to destroy some of the horcruxes. The spell left on Harry has only ever been able to harm the dark lord in a _defensive _manner. Albus knew how to destroy the horcruxes individually thus weaken him _little by little_.

Ella is the only one ever known to have been able to harm the dark lord using an offensive force. Finding out exactly what that force was, may finally bring an end to all of this."

Minerva looked at Severus but he seemed very lost in another world. After a second, he blinked but still couldn't look at her.

"I'll leave now… if you think of anything please tell us."

And with that Minerva left the potions master to dwell once again on a past, he couldn't escape.

End of Chapter Two

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	3. But, Who's Ella?

Chapter Three: But, Who's Ella?

The next morning at breakfast seemed just as quiet and uneventful as every other morning since the summer had started at Hogwarts. At least to Harry it was.

Harry lazily grabbed a slice of toast and began to look for some jam when he noticed that Snape in all his bat likeness was not at the staff table for breakfast. That part wasn't odd, since the summer had started Snape appeared to miss breakfast often enough. It was when Harry noticed that Professor McGonagall and Remus were also not at breakfast that he started to become curious.

Harry looked at the clock, breakfast was nearly over and McGonagall was not only always at breakfast but was punctual to boot. Remus while usually late, always attended as well.

_Something must have happened._

Harry abandoned his toast and all but ran from the Great Hall. As he approached McGonagall's office he noticed that the door was slightly ajar. Harry peaked inside to see McGonagall and Remus, both looked very serious.

McGonagall was pacing around the office as she spoke, " What if he won't tell us Remus? You know he never talks about her, never mentions her name, and when someone else does he makes to leave as soon as possible."

Remus was a little more composed but also very anxious, " Minerva, I wish you had told me you were going to speak with him. Or even about this crazed theory of Albus that somehow we can find out how a girl who disappeared twenty years ago managed to hurt the dark lord. Has it ever occurred to you that the same power Ella used, could have been the same power that caused her to suddenly be wiped from the face of the Earth?"

Harry's eyese widened as he heard Remus words. Someone had managed to seriously injure the dark lord?

_But, who's Ella?_

McGonagall had stopped pacing now and was looking at Remus, "Of course I have thought of that possibility. That is what makes this a a crazed theory. However, it is the only thing we have to go on right now. If there were any other ideas on how we can defeat the dark lord, I would never in a million years have gone to Severus office yesterday and asked him what I did."

Remus looked thoughtful, "And he didn't say anything?"

McGonagall almost smiled, "Other than scaring the wits out of me and telling me to leave…no. I made it very clear that we need this information though, so I am hoping he will eventually tell one of us what happened that night.

You know I used to think that maybe Ella opened up something in him and that once he had seen what love could really be like, that eventually he would find some way to be happy again with someone."

McGonagall sighed, "Oh, but how naïve that was. Whatever Ella managed to open up in Severus, she took with her wherever she went."

Remus stood up now and put a comforting hand on McGonagall's shoulder, "Ella was the love of his life, Minerva. She was a miracle, that girl."

All fell silent and Harry thought he could see tears welling up in Remus eyes. Sensing that nothing more would be said on the subject, Harry silently walked away from McGonagall's office.

XXXXXXXX

Severus woke on his living room floor, the bottle of whiskey from last night was still in his hand, only it was empty. As he began to move his head began throbbing with pain. The taste in his mouth reminded him of the several times he had managed to vomit earlier on that morning. His eyes were tired as he surveyed the damage to his living quarters.

The bar which had started out well stocked two weeks ago was now relatively empty, a testament to his new habit of binge drinking which had become a nightly ritual.

The couch was crooked and books were thrown across the room. As Severus began to walk through the rest of his rooms he saw there were a few broken glass tumblers, parchment littered the floor, his sheets and pillows had been ripped from the bed and now lay on the floor…along with everything else in the apartment.

Severus paid no heed to the damage, what the house elves didn't manage to fix, he would replace.

He went to his bathroom and found the vial with the hang over potion he had brewed the night before. Severus tossed back the potion, then leaned on the bathroom sink, waiting for it to take effect. That was when the old memories that tore at his mind the night before, began to invade his thoughts once again.

_Slughorn was droning on once again about the uses of mandrake root in reviving potions. Severus sat at his desk at the back of the class, his head buried in a book while everyone else took notes. _

_Severus knew everything Slughorn was saying and then some. The essay on this very subject due next week was already completed and laying on his desk in his dormitory. Severus eyes glanced up as he heard Slughorn begin to signal the end of class._

_"Alright everyone, now your essays on the uses of mandrake root are due on Monday, I have your essays on wolfsbane potion graded on my desk, please come and pick them up as you leave. Have a good weekend everyone." _

_Slughorn's attention then focused on the pretty brunette at the front of the classroom, "Ms. Brady, please stay behind." _

_Severus smiled to himself, another oh so 'noble' Gryffindor in trouble. The Gryffindors star seeker no less. The room was nearly empty as Severus gathered together his mountain of books to stow into his bag. He watched as Ella Brady walked slowly towards Slughorns desk. Despite that Slughorn was trying to keep his voice down, the dungeons echoed every word._

_"Ms. Brady, I'm quite disappointed. Your last two essays have not demonstrated that you are grasping the knowledge of potions making. The last few lab days you have not only blown up your cauldron, but other classmates cauldrons as well."_

_Severus stifled a grin as he picked up his bag._

_"Now, you are an excellent student in all your other classes and I understand potions has never been quite your subject but you have always managed to get by some what decently. I know that this is N.E.W.T. level work but that is why you must pass this class…perhaps…Mr. Snape."_

_Severus was nearly through the door when he heard Slughorn call his name. By the sudden excitement in Slughorn's voice as he called after him, Severus had an idea where this was going and he didn't like it. _

_"Yes, Professor?" Severus said._

_"Ms. Brady is in need of a potions tutor and since you excel at potions, I was thinking that perhaps you could assist her in filling this position." Slughorn beamed at this proclamation._

_Ella and Severus on the other hand looked mortified. _

_Ella was the first to attempt to write off this ridiculous idea of Slughorn's._

_"Professor, I appreciate the suggestion but I'm sure Severus is much too busy to have time for tutoring. I am as well, you know we have just started having quidditch practices and what not."_

_Well, she may get us both out of this without me having to say anything. Thought Severus. _

_Slughorn was relentless though, "Oh, I'm sure Severus isn't too busy to help out Ms. Brady and if I may say so, despite how much I enjoy quidditch myself, school should come first."_

_Severus and Ella looked defeated when Slughorn then continued._

_"Nevertheless, Ms. Brady this class is your responsibility and it is up to you to prioritize. Mr. Snape I only hope that if Ms. Brady decides she needs a tutor that you will assist her. I shall leave it up to you both. Now, you both have classes to get to."_

_A very relieved Severus got out the door first. But before Ella could manage to leave the classroom, Slughorn stopped her with one last thing._

_"Ms. Brady, you're a bright witch. Don't let some house rivalry stop you from succeeding in this class." _

_Ella stopped for a moment, surprised. Then turned and continued on her way._

_Outside the classroom Ella ran after Severus. _

_Damn him and his long legs, she thought. _

_Ella finally managed to catch up to Severus. "About tutoring…" _

_"I thought we made it perfectly clear back there that I'm too busy and you have quidditch practice." Severus said icily. _

_Ella remembered Slughorns words…he was right her grade was not worth her pride over some house rivalry. _

_Ella took a breath and looked up at Snape once again._

_"Please, I need to pass this class. I could use the help." Ella managed slowly, but politely. _

_Snape glared at her and said in the most condescending voice, "Oh no, the little Gryffindor can't manage to pass potions. Pity pity. Shouldn't you be running to Black or Lupin for help, I think they would have a little more interest in your problem than me."_

_Snape turned, a triumphant smirk on his face._

_Ella's rage nearly boiled over. Her pride quickly coming back she said to Snape,_

_"Do you need any help Severus?"_

_Snape turned, confused. "Excuse me?"_

_"Transfiguration's next, you'll need your wand."_

_"and your point?" Severus asked getting bored._

_Ella walked past him as she sweetly said, "Just wanted to know if you would need me to call someone to help. Your wand is so far up your ass, I didn't think you could manage to get it out by yourself." _

_Before Snape could retort he realized they were now in McGonagall's Transfiguration class. Severus turned to glare at Ella and there she was, a triumphant smirk on her face._

XXXXXXXX

After overhearing what McGonagall and Remus had been saying that morning, Harry did something very Hermione like…he went to the library.

Harry was on a mission, he needed to find out who Ella was and where was she last seen before she disappeared. Muggle libraries usually kept microfilm of old newspapers. He didn't know how wizarding libraries kept record or if they kept records of old newspapers at all. Nevertheless he decided to give it a shot.

Madam Pince looked very surprised when Harry asked if there were any issues of the Daily Prophet from twenty years ago in the library. Madam Pince escorted Harry to a reading room he had never noticed before and asked what year he was specifically looking for. Harry guessed between 1977-1980.

Madam Pince gave a flick of her wand and four huge filing cabinets rose out of the floor. Each cabinet had twelve drawers. Each cabinet represented a year and each drawer within the cabinet represented a month from that year.

"If there is something specific you're looking for like a name or event simply touch your wand to the cabinet you're looking through and state the name or event, all documents regarding that name, event or subject within that year will appear. Observe."

Madam Pince touched her wand to the filing cabinet of 1980 and said, "Hogwarts." Suddenly several drawers from the filing cabinet opened and past issues of the Daily Prophet zoomed in front of Madam Pince, all opened to the page of the newspaper where Hogwarts was mentioned.

"Now Mr. Potter, once you're finished just tap on the cabinet with your wand twice and everything will go back to it's rightful order. If you need anything else, I'll be at the desk."

Harry waited until he was sure Madam Pince was gone.

Harry sized up the filing cabinets, he only had Ella's first name and one or two key words he could use to attempt to locate what he was looking for. He thought of how he knew nothing about Ella other than she disappeared after a battle with Voldemort. He didn't know her last name, her age, if she had attended Hogwarts, what she looked like, nothing.

_This is going to be interesting. _Harry thought to himself.

He decided to start with the year 1977. He tapped his wand to the cabinet and said, "Voldemort."

Every drawer from the year 1977 opened and hundreds of newspapers zoomed out.

Harry sighed and tapped on the cabinet twice, all the newspapers flew back in.

"Well that was helpful."

Harry put his wand to the cabinet once again and said, "disappearances." This time only a few articles came out. There had been no one by the name of Ella, so Harry tried the next year. Still, no Ella.

After several more newspapers and a filing cabinet later, Harry came to the year 1979 to the month of May where he found something. Only it wasn't what he had expected. What he found was under the obituaries.

_Ella Brady, age 19, was found dead at her home yesterday._

_ It appeared that she passed away in her sleep from natural_

_ causes. Ms. Brady was thought to have gone missing a year _

_prior but it turned out her disappearance had been a prolonged_

_ visit to muggle Morocco. Ms. Brady had only recently been_

_ diagnosed with a rare kind of virus most likely picked up during_

_ her time abroad.. By the time Ms. Brady had sought magical_

_ attention, the virus had progressed too far…._

Harry stopped reading. None of this made any sense. Lupin and McGonagall had said Ella disappeared, yet here it stated that she had died. Harry thought that perhaps this was another Ella but once he swept through the rest of the disappearances in the remaining year, he discovered that there were no other Ella's in disappearances. Also, the article was strange in itself. It was vague, it gave no reason as to why Ella had been in Morocco or what the name of the virus had been. Most of all, as far as Harry knew wizards had a cure for almost anything, so what exactly was this virus?

These were thoughts that lingered on Harry's mind as he walked towards the exit of the library, when a thought occurred to him. He walked towards Madam Pince's desk.

Madam Pince was cataloguing at her desk when Harry approached her. Harry coughed to get her attention.

"Yes, Mr. Potter? Did you find what you were looking for?"

Harry thought a moment before answering, "Not exactly, but I did have a question. Does the library keep old Hogwarts yearbooks?"

Madam Pince nodded, "What year would you like to look at?"

Harry thought a minute, "1978."

Madam Pince stood up and walked to the back of her office and came back with an old black yearbook that simply had "Hogwarts, 1978" written on the cover.

Madam Pince handed Harry the book, then said, "Mr. Potter, I would appreciate it if I could get this yearbook back in the same condition I am giving it to you. I have had to start keeping the yearbooks in my office over the past years due to students coming in and writing all over them."

"I promise I won't make a single mark in it."

Madam Pince nodded then watched Harry like a hawk as he sat down in her line of vision.

Harry just stared at the cover for a moment. He was taking a guess on this. He knew Snape had graduated in 1978, because that was the year his parents had graduated. From the obituary in the paper, Ella Brady had been 19 when she died. So, perhaps this was the same Ella he was looking for, and if Lupin and Snape knew her that meant Sirius and his parents may have as well.

With a steady hand, Harry opened the yearbook and began to flip through the many moving pictures on the pages. Harry came to the Gryffindor section of the yearbook and his hand started to shake a little as he thought of his parents looking through this same yearbook.

There were pictures from the Yule ball that year and Hogsmeade weekends, then the Gryffindor quidditch team. There, standing in front of the quidditch pitch was his father, James Potter. He sat on his broomstick laughing and elbowing a fellow teammate.

Harry quickly read the caption underneath the picture which said, "The Gryffindor quidditch team before their final practice of the year." The caption went on to list who everyone was next to their position on the team. Harry quickly found _Chaser: James Potter, 7th year. _

It was the next name Harry read that really caught his attention…_Seeker: Ella Brady 7th year. _

Harry's eyes quickly darted to the photograph once more and found a slim girl of about eighteen, with a black ribbon in her hair, laughing at a young Sirius Black while trying to put bunny ears behind his head.

Harry only stared at the picture for a second, taking it in. It was like looking back in time, into a whole other world. One where things seemed so... simple.

With a heavy heart Harry turned the pages of the Gryffindor section to the individual photos of students. There, he found Ella Brady. Ella's hair hung long and lose in this picture, the black ribbon now tied around her neck. Ella had a playful smile in the picture but her eyes seemed knowing. Harry stared at the image for what seemed like hours.

_How could this simple girl have the power to nearly kill Voldemort?_

Harry flipped through the yearbook looking for anything more on Ella Brady, but aside from a few photos, he found nothing. It wasn't until Madam Pince informed Harry that the library was closing did Harry realize just how long he had really been there.

Harry handed the yearbook back to Madam Pince who after casting a quick spell on the book to check for any "new additions," smiled at Harry and bid him good night.

After leaving the library, Harry didn't want to go back to the common room in Gryffindor Tower. He had missed dinner and he knew rounds would start in a few hours. Wanting only for a quiet place to think, Harry found himself walking across the castle and up towards the Astronomy Tower.

XXXXXXXX

Remus had not had a very good day…or a very good week for that matter. Tonks had left a few days ago for Spain, where several death eaters were suspected of fleeing to. Dumbledore's portrait waking up and providing more confusion and agitation than what was had before, including this theory on Ella. That had not been easy on anyone most of all…Severus.

After speaking with Minerva that morning Remus had just been exhausted from everything that had occurred that week and had spent much of the day sleeping. Only about an hour ago did he wake up and that was only because he had to do rounds.

Remus was near the west wing when he saw the entrance to the Astronomy Tower. He smiled a little remembering how when he was a prefect, the Astronomy Tower had always been the preferred place for couples to sneak off to.

As Remus recalled boys… as in Sirius…used to bring girls up there because the girls thought it was "romantic" and the boys (Sirius) used to think it would put girls in the mood.

_Oh, how that backfired once or twice, _mused Remus.

As Remus approached the landing for the Astronomy Tower, he saw Harry sitting down and looking out through the glass.

"Harry? What are you doing here, it's past curfew."

Harry looked up at Remus looking every bit as worn out as Remus felt.

Harry tried to give a small smile as Remus sat down near him.

"Sorry Remus, I guess I didn't realize the time."

Remus nodded. "Come on Harry, let's get you to bed, you look like you need rest."

Remus stood up and waited for Harry to do the same.

After a few seconds, Remus was about to say something again when Harry finally looked at him.

"Remus, who was Ella Brady?"

End Chapter Three

**Hope you liked it, please review!**


	4. Potions & Quidditch

Chapter Four: Potions & Quidditch

"Remus, who was Ella Brady?"

Harry's question did not register with Remus at first. Everything in Remus Lupins brain had simply stopped. He stared at Harry, his eyes unblinking. He even stopped breathing as he stood still.

After a moment, he seemed to regain some composure and asked incredulously, "How do you know that name?"

Harry quickly explained what he had overheard in McGonagall's office earlier that morning and how that had led him to the yearbook and the obituary article.

This news seemed to have little affect on Remus` composure which for some reason made Harry suddenly felt very guilty about eavesdropping on him and McGonagall.

But Harry pressed on.

"Remus, what happened to her? Is she really dead?"

Remus' body seemed to come out of the stiff position it was in. He gave Harry a serious look and said,"Harry, get back to Gryffindor Tower."

Harry opened his mouth to argue but Remus cut him off before he could.

"Go."

The firm tone in Remus` voice made it clear that this was not up for negotiation. Harry headed down the stairs of the tower to his dormitory.

Remus, lost in his own thoughts — barely heard him leave.

He knew he would need to speak with Dumbledore, and soon.

XXXXXXXXXX

_Ella sat in the Gryffindor common room with potions texts opened all around her. Lily Evans sat across from her, trying to explain basic principles of mandrake root for the hundredth time. Remus also sat nearby — trying to help Lily explain the principles to Ella. _

_They had been going at it for hours and finally Ella brought her hands up to her forehead in defeat. None of it was sinking in._

_Lily spoke up, "Ella, I'm sorry. I know I'm not the best tutor." It was unfortunately true. Lily was top in potions next to Snape but when it came to helping someone else understand it, Lily simply lacked those skills. Remus also did well enough in potions but didn't have as much confidence in himself when it came to the subject to help Ella._

_Ella replied somewhat defeated, "No, it's not your fault Lily. I appreciate the help though. I suppose I'm just going to have to hope for the best."_

_Lily and Ella were not exactly close. True they were two of the few muggle born witches at Hogwarts and were both very capable in school, they even hung out with the same people but had never formed much of an attachment. Their relationship was usually limited to being lab partners, being in the same study groups, and when the Mauraders held some sort of event both were always in attendance._

"_Ella, you are not grasping this. You and I both know you need to pass this course, especially for N.E.W.T`s," said Lily._

_Remus continued. "What we're trying to say is that you may want to try and ask Snape for help again…"_

_Ella gave them both an incredulous look. _

"_What?! Have you two gone bloody mad? I swallowed my pride and asked him for help. You know what he did? Sneered at me and informed me that he wasn't interested in my problems!"_

_Both Lily and Remus seemed to contemplate this for a moment when Remus spoke up again,_

"_Snapes a git, we get that. But he may be your best shot at getting through the course."_

_Still not appearing to take this suggestion to heart Ella dryly asked, "And how do you expect me to get him to tutor me?" _

_After a moment Lily was the one to respond._

"_Snape is a Slytherin. Their first priority is always looking after their own hides. Perhaps paying him for his help or giving him something he doesn't have."_

_Right then Sirius Black and James Potter walked into the room,_

"_Yeah Ella…give Snape something he doesn't have." Sirius said suggestively._

_Remus rolled his eyes. It was no secret that Sirius had been after Ella since fifth year but when he said stuff like that, there was no question as to why he hadn't succeeded yet._

"_Last time I checked it was also something you don't have, Sirius." Ella easily fired back._

_Sirius frowned but walked towards the other side of the room with a laughing James Potter in tow._

_Ella turned her attention back to the conversation._

"_I have no money to pay him with and I haven't the slightest clue what I could trade for his help."_

_This was where Lily's genius came into play._

"_Wait! The quidditch season just started right? Snape has been trying to get on the Slytherin quidditch team for ages. Tell him that if he helps you, you will teach him to fly properly enough to get on the team," said Lily excitedly._

_Ella considered this for a moment then began to shake her head._

"_No, I can't. First of all try outs have already ended. Second — I would be helping the Slytherin quidditch team!"_

_Remus looked over his shoulder to see where James and Sirius were. Upon seeing them caught up in their own conversation on the other side of the room he turned back towards Ella and began to whisper._

"_There is a little known rule about the Hogwarts quidditch teams. The rule states that any student can challenge a player of their houses quidditch team for the position the player holds. If the student can prove themselves as the better player, the captain has to allow the them the slot. So for instance if Lily here wanted to challenge you for the position of seeker on the Gryffindor quidditch team and she proved she was a better seeker than she would get the position. Not many invoke the rule, but it does exist." Remus stated._

_Ella, slightly dazed by this information asked, "And as for me helping the Slytherin quidditch team?"_

"_You may help the team a bit, but it's more of a challenge for you. Also, if Severus decides to challenge Lucius for the slot of seeker, he would be replacing Malfoy. And I know just how much you would love to see Malfoy kicked off his high horse."_

_Ella stared at the carpet, considering her options._

"_Slughorn's right Ella, you shouldn't let some house rivalry get in the way of you getting through potions, even if it is Snape." Lily said sincerely._

"_I'll think about it. If I do decide to do this though and Snape accepts, no one can know I'm helping him." Ella said as she looked at both Remus and Lily._

"_We won't say anything." Remus said._

"_Promise." said Lily._

_Ella smiled, satisfied. "Good, now it's late we should get some rest. I'll see you two tomorrow."_

XXXXXXXX

_The next morning at breakfast Ella was trying to pay attention to what Remus was saying but kept staring across the hall at the Slytherin table. Snape was sitting eating his breakfast, his head once again stuck in a book._

_In spite of herself Ella was nervous about approaching him again. Not that she was scared but more because if Snape didn't help her she had no idea what she was going to do._

_She noticed him starting to leave, so she quickly finished her breakfast bid Remus a quick good-bye then headed out of the Great Hall where she saw Snape was already making his way towards the library._

_She needed to grab Snape and talk to him about this privately. Once he got into the library all hope of that would be lost and if she requested to speak to him alone he wouldn't go along with her willingly. So, she did the only thing she could think of._

_She caught up to him almost to the point where they were walking side by side, luckily he was still reading his book so he didn't notice her. Then as soon as they began to pass an empty classroom she ran towards him, pushing them both into the empty classroom._

_If anyone had been walking along when it had happened, the look on Severus Snape`s face would have been priceless._

_Ella slammed the door shut behind her as a bewildered looking Snape got up from the floor._

"_Brady, what the fuck…"_

"_Silencio!" said Ella_

_Suddenly Snape's mouth was moving but no sound was coming out._

I should have thought of this sooner_. Ella thought to herself._

_But Snape was not one to sit by and be played with. Ella caught him going for his wand just in time and quickly chanted a body binding spell._

_Now Snape looked positively murderous as he sat in front of Ella completely helpless._

"_I'm not going to hurt you. I'm only doing this so you will give me a chance to perhaps make a deal with you that could benefit both of us."_

_Snape's face was still contorted with anger but Ella could swear she saw a glint of curiosity in his eyes._

"_I need help in potions. I have tried getting help from others but they don't know the subject well enough or they have a hard time explaining things to me. You're the only person I can think of that can do both. If you do agree to help me there is something in it for you. I'll help you get onto the Slytherin quidditch team. That's what I can offer."_

_Ella then released him from the silencing spell and the body bind. The latter may have been a mistake because as soon as Snape got his wand in his hand he threw Ella back onto the wall, knocking the wind out of her. A surprised Ella looked up to see Snape walking towards her, getting so close their noses were almost touching._

_He then said in a low and dangerous voice, "Don't EVER do that again. Now you wanted my attention, you have it." Ella slid down the wall to the floor, her blood boiling._

"_How will YOU help me get onto the quidditch team?" Snape said condescendingly._

_Ella glared up at him from the floor, half tempted to send a hex his way, but thought better of it. She needed his help and now he was actually talking._

"_I can teach you how to fly so well that they will be begging you to take Lucius Malfoy's place as seeker."_

_Severus growled, "Try outs are over, there is no way I can get onto the team now."_

_Ella replied, "That's not exactly the case." She then explained the rule Remus had told her about the night before._

"_And you think you're so much better than Lucius that you can teach me to replace him on the team?" _

_Ella gave a disbelieving look. "Oh please, we both know that I can kick Malfoy's spoiled ass any day on the pitch."_

_It was true. Lucius was a decent seeker but his father had bribed the team captain into giving him the position and everyone knew it. Ella and Lucius had hated each other since they started at Hogwarts. The Malfoys discrimination against muggle borns was infamous and Lucius had carried on that family trait upon coming to Hogwarts — his primary target being Ella. So, when he had bought his way onto the team, it was only another reason for her to despise him. She was a talented seeker and the previous year had taken pride in proving that fact to Lucius every single match when she would grab the snitch before he did. The fact that Slytherin had held the quidditch cup for three years straight had made the Gryffindor's victory all the sweeter when they received the cup at the end of last year._

_Ella watched as Snape mulled this over in his head._

_After a few moments he looked at Ella and said in a monotone voice, "Fine, but there will be ground rules."_

_Ella looked up at him and he took this as a sign to continue._

"_First, most importantly no one is to know about this. We will decide on a place and time to meet. However, we are going to need to find a place to practice quidditch without anyone noticing. Second, don't slack off when I'm tutoring you. Be on time, and your questions ready. No dawdling over your work until you finally find something you don't understand."_

_Ella nodded her head. "That's all fine with me. I know a place we can practice quidditch without being seen. I'm sure I won't have to worry about you being late but I will say this, you can keep your opinions about muggle borns to yourself. If you call me mud blood at all, not only will you find yourself with a particularly nasty hex but our agreement will be over. Is that clear?"_

_Snape glared at Ella, "Fine. Meet me tonight at 7:00 on the seventh floor corridor in front of the portrait of Barnabas the Barmy. "_

"_I'll see you tonight then," said Ella evenly._

_After cautiously looking at her one more time, Severus left the room._

_Ella sighed._ What have I gotten myself into?

XXXXXXXX

The next morning, Remus appeared at McGonagall's office. Despite how exhausted Remus had been he had not slept very well the night before and it showed.

"Remus…is everything alright?" McGonagall questioned.

"I'm afraid we have a bit of a problem Minerva. Harry is asking questions about Ella."

McGonagall raised her eyebrows, "How did he…?'

"He overheard us talking yesterday. I must confess when he asked me who she was for a moment, I thought that perhaps Severus had finally told all he knew. Then of course I realized I was not living in a parallel universe and sure enough Harry shared with me how he had come to learn about her."

"How much does he know?" Asked Dumbledore, obviously just having woken.

"Well he knows what we said yesterday, obviously. But he went to the library and found the obituary in the prophet and also found her in an old yearbook."

Dumbledore looked at Remus "Now, he wants to know what really happened, I take it?"

Remus nodded, "I didn't tell him anything. I don't know what I can tell him."

McGonagall stared at her desk as she spoke, "I don't know what we're going to do. Potter has always had a knack for finding out what we won't tell him. And we don't know much either since Severus has yet to say anything to me."

There was a moment of silence as Remus and Professor McGonagall contemplated the situation. Finally Dumbledore was the one to suggest something.

"Remus, answer Harry`s questions at least the best you can. Tell him about Ella; what she was like, old stories, her relationship with Severus," Dumbledore stated.

Both McGonagall and Remus looked at the portrait.

"I don't understand. What could Harry possibly gain from all of this. I thought we were trying to find out how Ella fought the dark lord, then tell that to Harry. Not give him her life story," Remus said dismally, obviously not happy with this plan.

The late Headmaster that was ever so wise in life had not seemed to change in death.

"Remus, this is a hard subject for all of us. But Ella's power came from who she was, as it does with all of us. The better Harry understands who Ella was the better he may understand how she was able to hurt Voldemort. More importantly, losing Ella is largely the reason as to why Severus is the man he is today. Harry looks upon Severus and sees a monster that is not to be trusted. By telling him about Severus` past perhaps he can begin to understand that he can be trusted. Severus has spent the last twenty years doing nothing but trying to redeem himself because of Ella. Once Harry realizes she is what Snape has always fought for, he will not doubt his intentions any longer."

XXXXXXXX

After the meeting with Dumbledore, Remus had reluctantly agreed to Dumbledores plan. He had sent an owl to Harry asking him to meet him at his office that night.

Remus heard a knock on the door just as the clock stroke eight. Remus opened the door to see an anxious Harry standing there.

"Right on time." Remus tried to say cheerfully.

Harry gave a small smile and stepped into the small but cozy office.

The window overlooked the lake and there was a low ledge where several books had been placed. The desk was cluttered with an assortment of documents, letters, and schedules. There were no pictures on the walls or any of the magical gadgets Lupin had brought with him third year. There were a few boxes on the floor, waiting to be unpacked. Remus had only recently come back to Hogwarts and it still looked as if he hadn't completely moved into the office yet.

Despite how bare the office was, Harry felt welcome here.

Remus and Harry looked at each other, they both knew why they were there. So, Remus decided to get to the point.

"Harry, I'm sorry about my distance the other night when you brought up Ella. It's just…a painful subject for many of us. I was caught off guard and it's difficult for me to talk about."

The look in Harry's eyes was sincere. "I'm sorry Remus. I didn't know."

Remus was silent for a moment.

_This is not going to be easy_.

After taking a deep breath, Remus continued.

"It's alright. I'll answer the question you asked the other night — I don't know if Ella is dead."

"But the paper…" Harry began.

Remus snorted, "The paper was rubbish. We fed the Daily Prophet that story."

Now Harry was really confused.

"Why?"

Remus turned towards Harry, his voice soft and serious.

"Because people were beginning to ask questions. Ella was working for the Order when she disappeared. A big part of her job was assisting families of targeted witches and wizards into hiding. So, she was underground for a while even before she disappeared. Her cover story was always that she was abroad in Morocco. When she disappeared, we waited for six months and when we heard nothing, we said she had died. The time she was `abroad in Morocco' was so long that people were beginning to look for her."

Harry started to ask more…but when he saw that Remus was gazing out the window lost in his thoughts, he decided to hold his tongue for now and just let him speak.

"Ella was unlike anyone I have ever met. Unlike anyone any of us ever met. She had this charisma about her. Whenever she walked through the door, within a minute she was surrounded by people talking and laughing. Ella was acquainted with Lily, James, and Peter but she was closest to Sirius and I. Unfortunately for Sirius though he wanted to be much closer to Ella than she did him."

Remus stopped for a second and let out a soft sigh.

"God he was head over heels for her. I think his jealousy is what finally caused him to lead Severus down to the Shrieking Shack."

"Jealousy…of Snape?" Harry inquired, the confusion clear on his face.

Remus continued.

"Sirius had made it clear to Ella on numerous occasions how he felt about her. Every time she turned him down. But he never gave up on it. Much to everyone's surprise— Ella fell in love with Severus."

Harry was aghast. Stumbling over his own questions he tried to make some sort of sense of what Remus had just told him.

"Snape hates Gryffindor! And Gryffindor hates Slytherin. How did…? Why..?"

For the first time during the whole conversation, Remus actually smiled.

"Oh, I can assure you. Ella and Severus were not thrilled with each other in the beginning…"

_Ella stormed into the Gryffindor common room. "That good for nothing git!" she practically shrieked._

_Remus was sitting near the fireplace with a book in his lap. "Lessons going well?" he quipped._

_Ella stalked over, sending death glares to anyone she made eye contact with. She said in a low voice to Remus so that only he could hear, "I have had it with him! He is so snarky! I try and show him how to maneuver the broom into a dive and he makes comments about how I can't walk ten feet without tripping but can fly a broom without any troubles. If I sit there and tell him what Slughorn said about how to cut pig liver, he tells me that mincing it will actually be better for the potion! I mean who does he think he is?! He's not the professor!"_

_Remus raised an eyebrow, "What is the euphoria inducing potion? And what color is it supposed to be when made correctly?_

_As if reciting it from a book, Ella automatically said, "Euphoria can be induced by an elixir to cause one to feel incredibly happy and excited. The side effects can be excessive singing and nose tweaking. The color of the potion is supposed to be yellow if made correctly. Although according to Mr. Pompous Know-It-All, I can bypass those side effects with a sprig of peppermint."_

_As soon as Ella realized what she said here eyes went wide and her hand flew to her mouth._

Where had that come from?

_Remus` smile only widened, "You were in such a hurry to get out of class today, you forgot to pick up your essay on the uses of mandrake root."_

_Remus handed Ella the essay; she had received an Outstanding!_

"_Still think you can't put up with `Mr. Pompous Know-It-All?" Remus said in the most smart ass way possible._

_Remus actually thought he heard Ella growl as she stomped out of the common room — leaving him laughing._

_XXXXXXXX_

_Ella was supposed to meet Snape for quidditch lessons. They had been working together for a few weeks now and nothing had really changed in their behavior. He was rude, she was sarcastic, he was sarcastic, she was rude, then he was rude again and the cycle just went round and round. She had started to notice things about him though._

_He truly was distant and she realized right away he didn't trust her, or anyone else it seemed. That had been difficult for them when she had first started trying to teach him how to make sharp dives on the broom. From what she could tell, he probably thought she was trying to get him killed. Eventually though he had started to put at least some faith in her coaching._

_The place they practiced quidditch was off Hogwarts grounds. Sometime in their fifth year Remus had told Ella about a tunnel that lead out of the castle and into some woods near Hogsmeade. In the woods nearby, there was a clearing that was perfect for practicing quidditch. The trees around the clearing were tall enough that a broomstick could get fairly high without being noticed._

_Ella met Severus in a small classroom at the base of castle, near the dungeons. Ella walked towards one of the stone walls, and began counting stones. Four up starting from the left side of the wall and ten towards the center. Once Ella found the right stone she tapped her wand on the stone and whispered ,"Reveal" an entry way suddenly appeared at the base of the wall. Severus went in first then Ella. The ceiling of the tunnel hung low enough that even Ella had to bend her head, Snape practically had to walk on his knees._

_They both made it out of the tunnel with no problems. Neither said a word the entire time. When they made it to the clearing in the woods, they got right to practicing._

_Ella had made Severus start doing the regular exercises that she knew all the house quidditch teams ran through every practice. Once they were finished, he worked on doing dives with the broom and twisting and turning at narrow angles as he flew threw some of the trees. For the last part of practice that day Ella had brought a snitch for him to begin practice with._

"_Okay, I want you to start getting used to chasing the snitch. To get the snitch you're going to be using probably all the maneuvers I've been showing you. You can't be afraid to get as high on the broom as you can or fly as close to the ground as possible — especially when you may go from the highest point to the lowest in a matter of seconds. Now, I have set a height limit on the snitch so it does not surpass the trees but other than that the snitch can fly anywhere in the clearing and into the woods, so be ready for anything."_

"_Go!" Ella said, releasing the snitch._

_Snape took off after the snitch, which soared to the highest point as soon as it left Ella's hand. Just as Ella had warned him, the snitch dropped from the top of the trees to almost an inch off the ground in about two seconds. Ella was happy to see that he made the dive without hesitation and without fumbling. The snitch zoomed around the clearing and at one point Snape had to go into the trees after it when it finally came back out. The snitch began zooming an inch above the ground once again and Snape was trying to stay level with the snitch, his fingers almost touching it. But as his broom got lower to the ground, his knees were so long they began to drag. This caused Snape to fumble with the broom, which then sent him a good ten feet off the ground , then right back down again. The crash did not look good as Snape landed flat on his face._

_After what Ella would describe as a temper tantrum, Snape managed to get up and continue flying after the snitch. But after another hour It was starting to get late and they needed to get back to make curefew. _

"_Oi! Snape! We need to head back!" Ella shouted._

_As Snape landed, Ella brough her wand out and muttered, "Accio, snitch!"_

_The snitch which had started it's course towards the woods instantly flew to her open palm. _

_Ella turned towards a very frustrated Severus who was fuming._

"_I nearly had the bloody thing!"_

_Ella understood his frustration and just said, "You nearly had the snitch a few times, but we need to get back to the castle. We'll pick it up again tomorrow."_

_Snape didn't stop though._

"_I was doing that for hours and I didn't get the damn thing once!"_

"_This is not something that can easily be picked up. You're doing fine. You're flying has improved tremendously, you just need to get used to the snitch." Ella encouraged._

_She understood that Severus was frustrated she went through the same frustrations in quidditch it was apart of the game. Ella pocketed the snitch and began walking towards the woods when she Snape grabbed her by the wrist and roughly turned her around._

"_Obviously you're not teaching me everything…that's it isn't it? You're just teaching me the bare minimum just so I can help your sorry ass in potions."_

_Now Ella had been putting up with the arrogant git in front of her for weeks, and she was exhausted with all the tutoring, flying lessons, and quidditch practice. Not to mention all her schoolwork. She was at the end of her fuse and Snape's little tantrum, no matter how irrational it may have been, had pissed her off._

_Yanking her wrist from his grasp she gave him a look that could have killed._

"_I'm sorry, could you please listen to yourself? Do you realize how stupid that sounds? I can assure you I have been working my ass off with these practices and tutoring sessions. Despite how little you think of me, I have not been trying to waste your time by sabotaging quidditch practices. Do you realize how much you have improved? Two weeks ago you could never have made that dive, or managed your flying as well as you have been. But if you`re so impatient to think that this comes easily then not only should you not be playing quidditch but you should quit wasting my time!"_

_Snape was livid, but before he could say anything Ella had turned on her heel and started heading back towards the castle._

_When they got back to Hogwarts, Severus and Ella stepped out of the passageway. Without a word, Ella left Severus in the corridor and began heading back towards her dormitory._

_It was late and no one was in the common room as she ascended the stairway towards her room. Once inside and seeing that everyone was sound asleep, Ella stripped down to her underwear and got into bed. Only then did she begin to take notice of the tightness that had formed in her chest when she had yelled at Severus. The entire nights events began to play out in her thoughts and after a few minutes, without noticing it, Ella began to cry._

End Chapter 4


	5. Stubborn Creepy Gits

**Okay, a lot more Severus in this chapter than any other. Let me know what you think. Hopefully I will have the next installment up soon.**

Chapter Five: Stubborn Creepy Gits

It had been nearly two weeks since that quidditch practice in the clearing outside of Hogsmeade…and Ella hadn't spoken to him since. Not that he cared much; he was after all Severus bloody Snape. It wasn't unusual for people to not speak to him and it was a sort of behavior he had come to expect from people. In truth he preferred it that way.

_More time to read_ thought Severus.

And so he turned back towards the text lying beneath him, pretending that he wasn't watching her through the corner of his eye.

Ella had just come down for breakfast looking very ragged, from the looks of it she had only gotten two hours of sleep.

_Probably up all night writing that potions essay on The Draught of the Living Death.'_

Upon closer observation, Severus noticed that the ridiculous black ribbon she always wore in some fashion or another was what held her hair in a loose ponytail, which was resting on her shoulder.

Realizing he was staring, Severus cursed himself under his breath and tried to get back to his reading. He looked down at the same sentence he had read at least fifteen times by now and was still not actually contemplating what any of it said. After another five minutes of not being able to concentrate he slammed the heavy volume down so hard that half the hall looked up.

He just sneered, grabbed his bag and made his way toward the exit. All the while ignoring the whispers of "Creepy git."

Just before he left the hall he glanced to his right to see Ella staring at him, her face was unreadable.

Looking away quickly he stepped out of the hall, headed towards nowhere in particular.

Ever since that night, Severus had a nagging sort of feeling at his gut. He kept feeling as if something wasn't right, as if he had done something wrong. Which was preposterous because Severus Snape never made mistakes.

_Why did she have to be so self-righteous? She was sabotaging me, why keep going with the ruse after she had been caught? _

He had helped her in potions and in spite of himself; he had to admit that she had proved to be an amiable pupil. She had always been on time, if not early, to their lessons. She took him seriously when he explained things. She even put up with his sarcastic remarks about her inability to brew a correct potion. He had come to realize that she was a serious student, not unlike himself, and that she had a completely different way of viewing things…including magic.

Severus had never allowed himself to be civil towards her or even grow to like her. She was after all still a Gryffindor.

But… she had gained his respect.

As Severus snapped out of his thoughts, he noticed he had come to the quidditch pitch.

Even though he believed Ella had not been teaching him how to be a proper seeker, he couldn't deny that his flying had improved incredibly.

_'Perhaps a little flying can clear my head.'_

Suddenly very thankful for the free period he had today, Severus headed towards the broom shed to borrow one of the schools brooms. Since he was the only one out on the pitch, he noticed that one of the new Clean Sweeps the school owned was available.

Putting down his school bag, he grabbed the newly polished broom, walked to the middle of the pitch, mounted the broomstick and took off.

The cool morning air felt good against his face as it blew away the last remnants of sleep. Severus began to take a few laps around the field, to get the feel of the broom beneath him. The broom was faster than the Star Gazer Ella had borrowed for him to practice with but he quickly adapted to it.

Severus began to soar higher on the broom, enjoying the exhilaration brought by the ride. It was still early fall so the weather wasn't too cold or too hot. It was a sunny morning and the smell of dew was still in the air.

Severus had been so caught up in his thoughts and the ride itself that it was only then that he noticed two figures on the quidditch pitch below him. Before he had a chance to make them out, they mounted brooms and began speeding his way at an alarming pace. Within a mere few seconds the faces of James Potter and Sirius Black were quite apparent. To Severus' nervousness, he noticed that they were soaring towards him but that each was coming at him from both sides.

_'Shit' _was the only thing that could come to Severus mind as he thought hastily about what to do.

Just as he made a grab to his back pocket to reach for his wand, both Black and James were level with him.

"Oi! James what have we got here?" Black yelled to Potter.

"I don't know Sirius, it looks like a snake trying to fly!"

"Oh, I think we can teach him how to fly…" Black said dangerously.

Right then both Black and Potter began to fly directly towards him. Just as they were both about to run into him Severus, as if by reflex, took a sharp dive towards the ground. This caused both James and Sirius to ram into each other.

It was then that Severus heard laughter and looked down to see a small crowd of 7th years had gathered on the quidditch pitch.

Black and Potter cursed and fumbled a bit as they now angrily sped back towards Severus. He then headed full speed towards the castle, James and Sirius following him and quickly gaining.

Dodging between the towers and turrets of the castle was not a problem for Severus after learning how to dodge trees in the forest. It was however, a problem for Black and Potter. Potter was a chaser and Black was a beater, they knew how to dodge bludgers, neither was used to the acrobatics involved in flying like a seeker.

Both of Severus pursuers were suddenly losing speed, as they had to take their time dodging the different parts of the castle. Soon though he knew they would be gaining on him once again.

Making another dive, Severus got as low to the ground as he possibly could. As Potter and Black soon came down behind him Severus grabbed a large rock and threw it at a large tree holding a large, protective, family of birds. As soon Severus had passed the tree and Potter and Black were coming upon it, Severus through the large rock into the heart of the tree. Causing several birds to come out and begin attacking Black and Potter.

Severus suppressed his laughter as the birds followed Potter and Black continuing to chirp and claw at them.

As Severus began to think of how he could lose them next, the sight of an open window in the castle suddenly inspired him. The window was just big enough for him to squeeze through. James and Sirius were only about twenty feet or so behind him now, both speeding towards him shoulder to shoulder with intent to kill on their faces as the birds flew directly behind them.

Making a small drop towards the window, Severus went full speed through the window, praying that it was not a classroom and that the two angry Gryffindors behind him would not think about what they were doing until the last moment.

At least one of his prayers was answered. Severus was only two or so feet through the window when he heard a loud 'smack!' Sure enough Black and Potter had been coming at him too fast and following too close that neither had noticed the small size of the window, which was limited to allow one person entrance rather than two. Severus turned and actually laughed at the sight of the two dunderheads looks of obvious pain and trying to maintain balance on their brooms. Especially since the impact had nearly knocked them off.

As Severus enjoyed this moment of victory it took him a moment to realize he was hovering in the middle of a classroom full of 5th years and of the entire classroom's he had to land in…

"Mr. Snape!"

…. It had to be Professor McGonagall's.

"Come down this instant!" she shouted

As Severus landed gracefully on the floor he saw McGonagall almost run to the open window. Potter and Black who had totally regained sense and realizing where they were were now trying to silently fly away before McGonagall noticed them. They too were not so lucky.

"Potter, Black! Come back here right now!"

As the two friends made their way back to the window, McGonagall glanced at all three and angrily said, "What were you three trying to pull? Flying into classrooms! Not to mention while classes are going on! I have never seen such behavior in all my years! You three will report to the Headmasters office, immediately!" The Transfiguration yelled, reminding Severus very much of a howler.

Within ten minutes all three boys were sitting in Dumbledore's office.

They all sat in front of the headmaster's desk awaiting his decision on punishment.

The round office was quite spacious yet cozy. On the wall behind Dumbledore's desk hung the snoozing portraits of past headmasters and headmistresses. The desk was littered with tons of papers but they all seemed to be organized in some way or fashion. The large, oversized armchairs the three boys now sat in were comfortable and soft. The headmaster didn't look at all stern or in a punishing mood. He simply sat there at his desk with his hands folded in front of him, and what looked to be a small smile on his ancient features.

"Well, I can see the three of you made great use of your free period this morning." Dumbledore said nonchalantly.

"Mr. Black, Mr. Potter, you both know better than most the rules of broom flying on school grounds. I agree with Professor McGonagall that what you three did was not acceptable." Dumbledore stated evenly.

The three head boys seemed to be holding their breath as they awaited their punishment.

"You three will be serving one week's detention with Filch starting tomorrow and

Mr. Black, Mr. Potter I am also requiring you to miss your quidditch practice tonight."

The two Gryffindors eyes went wide.

"Sir, I don't understand…" Potter started.

"Because Mr. Potter, as I stated before, you and Mr.Black should be even more aware of the rules than other students due to your positions on the Gryffindor quidditch team. I am making an example of you. Broom flying is a privilege that is not to be abused, especially by two of Hogwarts quidditch players. Now, it's only one practice and when you are absent from it tonight, I want you to explain to anyone who asks why you couldn't be there tonight. " Dumbledore state finally with a voice that rang with authority.

On a much lighter note, Dumbledore continued.

"Lemon drop, before you leave?"

_Not the bloody lemon drops!_ Severus thought to himself as he declined.

"Now, I believe you all have a class to get to. Mr. Potter, Mr. Black, you are dismissed."

Both of the Gryffindors stood up, sent glares towards Severus, and made their way towards the door.

Severus watched as Dumbledore's office door clicked shut, then slowly turned back towards the headmaster.

"I'm sure you're wandering why you're still here, Severus."

Severus nodded.

"You know, I have watched both James and Sirius play quidditch since they were in their third year. They are both very capable flyers and there are those that would argue that they are some of the best quidditch players at Hogwarts." Dumbledore stated very matter of factly. Then continued.

"You're flying was very impressive today…much improved I noticed."

Severus squinted his eyes a bit at the headmaster giving the elder wizard a wary look.

_Does he know about the lessons?_

There was that damn twinkle in his eye like he definitely knew something.

"Thank you, sir. I have had some help." Was all that Severus offered.

"Indeed. Well, there was no snitch to be chased after this morning but I wager that if there were, you would have caught it."

Severus was now even more perplexed as he looked at the headmaster.

"Keep up the practice Mr. Snape and please learn the rules."

Severus nodded once again, bid the headmaster good day, then walked out of the office with even more thoughts wandering around in his head than before the broom ride this morning.

Dumbledore was right, Severus was beginning to realize as he walked towards his Charms class. Despite how much he hated them, he and everyone else knew that Black and Potter were talented flyers and even more talented quidditch players. If they had been seekers or had at least been used to flying in the style befitting that of one, Severus doubted very much that he would have escaped them today.

But then Severus remembered an incident after a quidditch match last year.

Lucius had been harassing Ella again and Sirius had taken off after him on broomstick. Lucius was Slytherin seeker and knew how to fly like one, that fact alone had not saved him though. Despite that he could dive and make quick turns, Black had managed to catch up with him in only a matter of minutes.

So, being able to fly like a Seeker had not saved Severus today alone.

Severus then thought back to all his quidditch lessons with Ella.

All the insistence that he make dives over and over again until they were to her liking. Making him fly through the woods and making turns to avoid trees, despite the pouring rain. The lessons where she would make him fly as low to the ground as possible without touching it, or even the spiral turns he would have to make every damn practice.

Ella had not taught him the bare minimum of what it was to be a seeker. She had pushed him constantly. She had made him do rigorous lessons not to watch him make a fool of himself or to laugh at him, although that may have been a bonus for her. She had pushed him so he could be the best, better than Malfoy, able to out fly a good chaser and beater like Potter and Black. Despite how much of a challenge it would be for her and how much it would help the Slytherin quidditch team she had been training him to ensure her promise all along. She had been training him to make him good enough to take Malfoy's spot. To become the seeker of the Slytherin quidditch team.

Severus was suddenly very angry. Even punching a nearby wall as he headed towards class. For once…he had been wrong.

XXXXXXXX

The next day, Severus got up out of bed a little earlier than usual. He had not had a good night sleep. The fact that he was now knowingly wrong about Ella had made him feel all the guiltier, thus making sleep all the more difficult.

He threw back the sheets, clad in nothing but a pair of sweat pants. He made his way over to the dormitory bathroom, towards the sink. He splashed some water on his face trying to wake himself up. Putting his long, toned, arms on each side of the sink he looked hard at the drain. He knew how to get rid of this retched feeling, but he didn't want to do it. Admitting to himself that he was wrong had been hard but admitting it to someone else would be nearly impossible.

_Least of all a Gryffindor girl!_

But in some way Severus felt he owed Ella an apology and if there was one thing he hated more than feeling guilty, it was feeling as if he owed something.

So, having resolved what he now knew he must do, he quickly dressed. Within a few minutes he was on his way down to the Great Hall for breakfast. He didn't quite make it to the entrance before he heard someone call his name.

"Snape!"

Severus turned, there walking towards him was Zane Zabini, captain of the Slytherin quidditch team.

"That was some great flying yesterday. You really handled yourself well up there, especially with those two fools trying to catch up with you. Nice work!"

Before Severus could say anything more, Zabini was called over to a group of people in the Great Hall.

Zane would not be the last to congratulate him that day. News of the incident had spread like wildfire through most of the student body. Most of Slytherin patted his back or shook his hand at some point during the day. Even a few Ravenclaw's who were not exactly fond of Black and Potter had said something to him. The rest simply whispered and stared as he walked by.

Snape was very unused to all this attention and it made him a bit uncomfortable. So, he mainly nodded in silent thanks whenever someone brought up the subject and continued to keep to his daily, quiet, routine. All the while, he kept an eye out for Ella.

At breakfast, Snape had seen her for a brief second as she left the Great Hall. In potions, he had tried to catch her eye but she refused to look in his direction and mainly spoke with Lily Evans while they brewed a few simple calming draughts. In Transfiguration he had thought he would be able to talk to her after class but she had walked back to her dorm with a few friends and he didn't dare to ask her for if he could talk to her privately.

An hour before he was supposed to report to Filch that night for detention, he had decided he would go to the library to get some reading done. He walked passed the main entrance as he headed in the direction of the library, when he noticed the door was open. Looking outside, he saw the quidditch pitch. Flying above the pitch, was a person on a broomstick performing the most reckless and dangerous of stunts. Ella.

Without hesitation, Severus started towards the pitch. As he neared, he watched as Ella gracefully flew over the pitch. He was surprised to see her hair down, something she rarely did while flying. Her black ribbon was now a choker around her neck. She looked so calm.

As Severus approached the empty pitch, he saw Ella look right at him. After a moment she made her way back to the ground, dismounting and hesitantly meeting his gaze.

Severus walked towards her, closing the ten feet between them.

"What do you want?" she asked coldly.

It was then that Severus froze. He couldn't say anything and there she was looking at him expectantly. Suddenly this whole apology thing was much more difficult than it first appeared as Severus pride began to fight against his guilt.

Without thinking, Severus said in the most condescending tone he could muster, "You're calming draught today. You were supposed to chop the mint, not mince it. Also, you were supposed to add the chocolate first. You could have blown the whole lab up!"

Ella's eyebrows suddenly disappeared into her bangs.

"You came all the way out to the quidditch pitch, four hours later, to tell me that I bungled up the calming draught?" Ella said in a dry, disbelieving tone.

"Well…you could have killed us all." Severus said, attempting to recover.

"Lucky for you, I didn't. Now, unless there is something else, I have to get back to practice. I hear there is some Slytherin prat who can supposedly fly better than Malfoy; I have to be on my game. Now if you'll excuse me." Ella said sarcastically.

She began to turn and walk away when Severus did something that surprised them both. He reached out and grabbed her gently by the wrist.

Ella turned, wide eyed. She looked at her wrist then back at him.

Unable to look at her, Severus said in a harsh whisper, "I was wrong."

Ella stepped closer to him as he released her wrist. "I'm sorry, what was that?"

Letting out a sigh, Severus raised his eyes to hers and said evenly, "I was wrong. I realize that now."

Ella folded her arms and looked at him stubbornly, "And?"

Severus tried not to roll his eyes, "I'm sorry."

Ella nodded her head, "Alright." Then proceeded picked up her broom and started walking away.

Severus was confused. He had swallowed his pride, admitted he was wrong and apologized! What bloody more did she want?

He caught up to her in a few quick strides, "That's it?"

Ella had the audacity to look bored, which annoyed him. He liked being taken seriously despite the fact that he had just served his dignity up on a platter for her.

"Yes…that's it. Is there something else?"

Severus had to keep himself from shouting, "Yes there's something else…would you stop and talk to me?" He finished in an impatient tone.

Ella did stop and when she turned, she wasn't looking bored anymore. In fact she looked livid.

"Why? What else could you possibly want from some _mudblood Gryffindor _like me?"

Severus was taken aback by the sudden change in composure. She was still seething at him despite the two weeks they hadn't spoken. It was something he now realized she may still be mad at him for awhile even if this worked.

Severus chose his next words carefully.

"You're doing better in potions Ella, but we both know you're not ready for N.E.W.T.s and we both know I'm not good enough to try out for Seeker yet. As you put it once before, we can help each other."

Ella didn't speak. She didn't look at him. She stood there still as she contemplated his words.

It was twilight and a few stars could be seen as the sun began it's decent into the horizon. All was quiet on the grounds; the castle seemed to be larger than ever as it's faint shadow fell across the grassy field surrounding it. Severus could tell his hour was nearly up and he would need to be heading for Filch's soon. But he didn't move.

After what seemed like hours, Ella turned her head and looked at him. It was plain to see that she was still angry and he couldn't blame her. Ella walked purposefully towards him to the point where their noses were nearly touching.

"If we do this, I want to make a few things clear. I know what I'm doing when it comes to quidditch, so you need to trust me. If you don't then this isn't going to work because I'm not going through you're melodramatic bullshit about how everyone is out to sabotage you, again. Also, you need to learn to be patient. You have the flying down but when we start practicing with the snitch it's going to be just as difficult as the first day you sat on a broomstick. Lastly, I work my ass off at what I do. So, I expect you to do the same. If any of this is going to be a problem for you then you're one your own."

_God, she could give McGonagall a run for her money. _Severus thought to himself.

"None of it will be a problem, you have my word." Severus said seriously.

"Good, we start tomorrow night at 7:30."

Severus looked up, "I can't, I have detention with Filch for the rest of the week. Every night at 7:00."

"We have to practice at night otherwise someone will see us."

Severus thought for a moment.

"Filch usually lets us out at 9:30. I can meet you then."

Ella nodded, "Alright, meet me then at the passage on the bottom floor."

Severus nodded and started back towards the castle. He knew Ella was still pissed at him but she had agreed to help him. Severus quickly walked back to the castle, already late for his detention.

End Chapter Five

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	6. Unknown Waters

Ch. 6 Unknown Waters

Ella sat staring outside the window of Transfiguration class. She was passed the point of even pretending to pay attention. The last few weeks had been quite…eventful to say the least. The events themselves had left a lot to say and even more to think about.

Ella looked towards the right side of the classroom where Snape sat, vigorously taking notes.

Yes…"events" had brought up many questions for Ella. Questions that seemed so obvious to ask but for some reason were never apparent before five weeks ago. Questions she knew she shouldn't be contemplating. Because to ask questions would indicate curiosity and curiosity indicates some sort of reason to care. The reason to care was what got people in trouble. In the world she lived in questions about someone like Severus Snape got people like her into trouble. Yet she couldn't help but mull the questions over and over again.

_Why is he always alone?_

_Why doesn't he laugh or smile? _

_Does he hate people in general?_

_Aside from Sirius and James, why does he hate people?_

_Why is he so quick to think the worse of me? Is it because I'm a Gryffindor? Because I'm a muggle born? Or both?_

After they had renewed their agreement Severus had done everything he had agreed to. He worked hard, he did everything she told him without question, and he at least had the appearance of being patient.

He was still Snape though. Same sarcastic remarks that he could manage to get away with, same condescending air, same facial expressions that said "are you serious?" Complete with a raised eyebrow.

Ella had almost expected that the demands she had made him agree to would leave little to no room for his usual snide remarks and uncaring manner. Yet, he had managed to adhere to all the demands in behavior while still maintaining his entire usual attitude.

Upon realizing this, Ella felt relieved. That was what had scared her. Why would she be relieved that Snape was going to still give her the same bullshit he always had? What was wrong with her?

He wasn't mean to her…not really. He never said anything that was truly hurtful. They knew so little about each other to really make those comments.

That was when all the questions she had started invading her thoughts. If Ella had to be completely honest with herself she would admit that she almost always laughed at the times he would make some sort of sarcastic comment about trivial things such as how ridiculous it was that Slughorn made them brew the herbs _before_ chopping them rather than vice versa.

Then there were other times when she wasn't secretly amused. For instance they seemed to drive each other insane when they would get into small battles of insults. Ella had learned to be quick with her responses towards Snape.

But despite how much they would get under each other's skin, they still maintained their agreement and never let their frustration get in the way with their lessons.

Tearing her eyes off of Snape, Ella tried focusing her attention back on McGonagall's lecture. She would have more time to contemplate her questions about Snape at their quidditch lesson later that night.

XXXXXXXX

The practice in the clearing outside of Hogsmeade was not unlike the rest of that week's practices. Ella had Severus run through the regular exercises and then would release the snitch and have him fly after it in an attempt to catch it. For their last few practices, Ella had started chasing the snitch as well.

"You need to get used to not being the only seeker on the pitch." Ella had explained to Severus when he had given her a loathsome glare after she had caught the snitch within thirty minutes, when it he had already been chasing after it for nearly two hours.

Sometimes Severus wouldn't catch the snitch and they would simply call it a night. For the most part though, he was steadily getting better.

Professional seekers could go days, sometimes even months in one game just trying to catch the snitch. There was no way to really get faster at catching the damn thing. It was a variable of the game, always changing. However, you could tell who was used to playing with a snitch and who was not.

Severus was getting more and more comfortable with the snitch and becoming more effective at catching it.

After another hour and a successful practice where Severus had managed to catch the snitch, they decided to head back towards school. As they walked through the woods to get to the clearing, Ella decided to be brave and try and get some answers for the questions swimming in her head.

"So…what are your plans for after graduation?" Ella said, starting with a fairly neutral question.

The question apparently was not as neutral as she thought because the immediate response was a raised eyebrow and the "are you serious?" look she had become quite accustomed to receiving from him.

"Brady, we have a pretty good agreement here, why ruin it with small talk?" Severus said as if the entire subject already bored him.

As usual, Ella was on the defensive.

"I'm sorry… I'm apparently one of those weirdo's who feels strange after spending enormous amounts of time with someone for over a month and all they know about that person is that they hate you and sneer at everything that moves." Ella said sarcastically.

"Sounds like you got the gist of it, why would you ever need to know anything else?" Severus said in a thoughtful tone.

Ella gave him a hard look, "Indulge me."

Severus sighed and then said in a dry tone, "I have an apprenticeship with a potions master. I want to go into research…as I understand you muggles would call it being a 'scientist."

" An apprenticeship! You already got one this early? That's impressive. Have you always wanted to go into potions research?"

"Have you always asked so many bloody questions?" Severus asked irritably

Severus didn't like this. He always had control, especially over the few conversations he permitted between himself and his peers. No one ever asked him personal questions. Most, simply had a purpose when they approached him in a conversational manner. They stated their purpose, he responded and that was that.

He had no idea what Ella was doing, no idea what her purpose was, and no idea what she hoped to gain from this information. All and all this was unfamiliar territory for him.

So, he did the only thing he could think of in hopes of regaining some sort of control. He turned the focus on her. At this point he would do anything to get the attention off of him.

"Don't you have some silly little plans for yourself after graduation?" Severus asked dryly.

They had come to the tunnel and were now going through it.

Ella simply looked at him for a moment before answering.

"I'm taking a year off to travel for awhile. After that I want to be an auror or work for the Department of Mysteries…much to my mother's disdain. That's why I need the N.E.W.T in potions."

Ella paused again for a moment then asked, "What about your folks? They must be pretty happy, apprenticeships are hard to come by."

Ella had unknowingly struck a chord.

Severus became even more cold and serious as they entered through the passage.

" We're back at the castle, conversation time is over." Severus said in a monotone voice.

The passage closed back up behind Severus as they just stood their looking at each other. Despite Severus' constant slouching, he always towered over her by nearly a head. Now he stood up straight almost in a defensive manner. He was expecting another screaming match with her as she looked up at him with an unreadable expression on her face.

But, like so many times before. She surprised him.

Ella looked at him straight in the eye and said in a voice that was barely audible.

"You really don't trust me, do you Severus? Or is it that you don't trust anyone?"

Severus remained still and silent as he just continued staring at her.

Ella merely nodded her head as if understanding it was time for her to go, "I'll see you tomorrow night for our potions lesson. Good night."

Severus didn't move as he watched her walk out of the empty potions classroom back towards Gryffindor Tower.

XXXXXXXXX

As Ella walked up from the dungeons, she began to unwind her hair from the loose braid she had put it in. Her mind was still back in the empty classroom where she had left Snape. It had been a long day indeed and now it seemed Ella had more questions than she had this morning.

As she ascended the main staircase outside the Great Hall, she heard a voice scream her name.

She turned to see Sirius running to catch up with her.

"Ella, where have you been? I have been looking all over for you?"

"I was studying, Sirius. What do you need?" Ella lied.

"I went to the library, you weren't there."

"Did I say I was in the library?" Ella asked slightly annoyed.

_God, I don't want to deal with him right now_

When Sirius didn't say anything, Ella turned and kept continuing up the stairs.

"Ella, wait!"

Ella inhaled and turned.

"What has been up with you lately? You're never around much at night and when you are around your head always seems somewhere else." Sirius asked concern.

"I have been studying Sirius, I'm not doing well in potions and I'm slipping in charms as well. Now, I have a full load and I have quidditch. I'm busy and I'm sorry if I don't seem to have as much time to hang out." Ella tried to sound sincere. All she wanted was to go up to her room and collapse into her bed.

But Sirius still wouldn't let her go.

"Yeah? You seemed to have time to talk to _Snape_. I saw you two talking on the pitch last week. You don't have time for your friends, but you have time for some pathetic Slytherin bastard?"

Sirius words cut like a razor.

"Wow Sirius, is your head still reeling from when it collided with McGonagall's window or are you just unabashedly jealous?"

Sirius fists clenched into tight balls.

"He's not one of _us _Ella."

Ella glared at Sirius.

"It's none of your business who I talk to. I will talk to anyone I choose and not answer to you for it. I don't belong to you Sirius, so quit acting like you have property rights."

With that Ella turned and continued on up the stairs.

XXXXXXXX

"Why is Snape staring at you?" Remus asked the next day as he, Lily and Ella layed out on a blanket on the front lawn of Hogwarts, as they studied for Transfiguration.

Ella looked up from her text to see that Severus was sitting on a bench, near Lucius Malfoy and Greg Goyle, by the lake with a book on his lap. He was doing just as Remus said…staring at her.

As Ella looked back down at her own book, she lightly replied. "I might have said something he didn't particularly agree with."

Remus seemed to think about her statement for a moment, "Do you ever say anything he _does _agree with?"

Ella gave him a pointed look.

"You must have said something big to him last night to deserve this kind of attention. What was it?" Remus asked.

After a moment Ella breathed a sigh of defeat, knowing the subject was not going to be dropped.

"I told him he didn't trust anyone."

"Hit the nail on the head, did we?" Lily said.

The look of confusion that graced Remus features caused Ella and Lily to laugh.

"Muggle saying, it means she stated the point or in this case the obvious." Lily explained.

"I also notice Sirius seems to be making a point to avoid looking at you at all costs," Remus gestured over to Sirius who was focusing on cleaning his broom. "What did you do, switch Sirius and Snape's minds with their bodies?"

Ella rolled her eyes.

"No, after I left Snape, I had a run in with Sirius. You know he's been a right prat in the past but last night I think was a new record."

"So you told him…?" Lily prodded.

"That I didn't belong to him and he needed to mind his own damn business." Ella finished.

"So you were busy pissing people off last night, I see." Remus stated.

"I just don't get why he is the way he is." Ella said.

"He's had a huge crush on you for two years now and you are suddenly going missing at night and seen talking with someone he despises. He's bound to get jealous, Ella." Remus explained.

"I was talking about Snape."

"Well…that one is a bit more difficult to comprehend. But I will say this, when you've grown up for the past six years with people like James and Sirius harassing you, I can see where there would be an inclination of distrust. I don't know much about Snape though. I don't think anyone does." Remus said thoughtfully.

After a moment Remus spoke up again."Why do you care so much? I thought you hated him."

Lilys eyes lit up, " She has a thing for the greasy git!"

Ella gave a disbelieving look and said in the most dry tone she could muster.

"Please…I just wander how someone can be so miserable. Now enough about non school related things, we need to study."

With one last look up at Snape who had returned to his reading, Ella returned to quizzing Remus on Transfiguration. For the next hour the three Gryffindors sat studying. The afternoon began to fade and more and more students began to head back to the castle to get ready for dinner.

Lily sat up and began to pack her books away as James made his way over to the three. He gave her a kiss on the cheek and waved to Remus and Ella as the two made their way back to the castle.

"It must be nice to have what they do." Ella said, smiling as they watched the pair walk away.

"I can think of someone who would happily fill the position, if you're looking." Remus said as he gestured towards Sirius, who was now making his way back towards the castle as well.

Ella shook her head, "He can be such as ass, Remus. You should have seen him last night."

Remus sighed, "I did."

Ella looked up, "What?"

"He was looking everywhere for you, he came into the common room and asked if I had seen you."

"What did you tell him?" Ella asked wide-eyed.

" I told him the truth that you were probably off practicing quidditch or studying, I knew it was one or the other...just didn't mention both were with Snape."

Ella sighed in relief. "Thanks."

Remus looked at her very seriously.

"I promised I wouldn't say anything Ella, and I intend to keep that promise. But…do you like Snape? Honestly?"

Ella decided to give Remus one of Snapes "are you serious looks?"

"Remus, how I can I like someone I don't know anything about? Not to mention we hate each other."

Remus didn't drop the serious look, "You know what they say, there's a thin line between love and hate. But Ella…be careful. He's a Slytherin and you're a muggle born Gryffindor. I hate to say it but you know how people would react."

Ella laughed. "Remus please, Severus Snape and me? Just because I'm a little curious doesn't mean anything. You know me, I like to know everything."

Remus just kept looking at her, "Alright, Ella."

Ella gave him one of her mischievous smiles, "Now let's go or we're going to miss dinner."

XXXXXXXX

After Ella had left him the night before, Severus had just stood there in the classroom for a long time. Her words had hit home.

It was a conscious truth for Severus he didn't trust anyone. He didn't know how too.

All he had ever known growing up was a broken household. His father was an abusive drunk. At a young age, Severus had started to learn to not be in sight when his father came home from work every day. His mother on the other hand, didn't have much of a choice. So, he would listen to the screams and the sound of fist coming in contact with flesh as he heard his mother sobbing and pleading. He had never understood why she didn't stand up to him. She was beyond powerful enough. What would a drunken muggle do against a powerful witch? All she needed to do was flick her wand, but she never did.

So, Ella's question about whether his parents were happy for him was nothing more than a reminder of what would never be. He would never have parents that would be happy for him.

Severus had found a way to survive his home, to drown out the yelling and the sound of more liquor being poured, he had found salvation in books. He was a bright child. He had started learning how to read at a very young age. When his magic began to show, he had gone to his mother's library and found the small stash of books on dark spells. If his father ever came looking for him, he wanted to be sure he would give the bastard exactly what he deserved. So, hexes and curses became nightly reading for him. By the time he had become of age to start attending Hogwarts he knew if anyone ever wanted to harm him, he could defend himself. That was how it had always been. He had constantly been on the defense, almost ready for anything that first year at Hogwarts.

Only about third year did he start socializing even a little and he did have a few friends…he supposed. Mainly they were a group of Slytherins to get drunk with on occasion when things just seemed worse than usual. That and sometimes they paid him to write their essays for them.

But, he never trusted them. A lot of them would only keep him at arms distance. Not many people knew of his mixed heritage but the ones who did avoided him at all costs. The purebloods didn't want to be tainted by a half-blood.

Severus had no social grace whatsoever and was not the charismatic type that James, Sirius, and Lucius were. For the most part, people thought he was a strange, bookworm. That suited him fine.

But then came Ella Brady, the Golden Girl.

Ella had tons of friends, who were just as loyal to her as she was to them. She was ambitious and determined when it came to school. She loved to fly and made a great seeker and as much as Severus hated himself for noticing, she was a very attractive girl. She was so very different from the eleven-year old girl he had seen six years ago.

The first time Severus had seen Ella was in their first year. Not many students stayed in the library very late, and he had become quite accustomed to it and enjoyed the privacy. That was why he was so annoyed when he noticed a short, Gryffindor girl wandering around the library. She was a beanpole, with freckles and long stringy hair. Back then she even had that stupid black ribbon tied as a headband.

She had come into the library quite late when Severus had been entranced in a book. When there was a loud crash. He had jumped so high in his seat from surprise. He looked over his shoulder to find an eleven-year old Ella Brady on the floor next to a shelf of fallen books. She had tripped and knocked the entire shelf over being the clumsy thing she was.

Six years later she had grown up. She had come into her own. She had curves, her freckles had faded, and her hair was better managed these days. She wasn't knocking over bookshelves anymore but she could still be quite clumsy.

Severus never would have imagine that she and him would be spending this much time together, that they would need each other for things like potions and quidditch. Now, she was asking questions, perfectly reasonable questions to anyone else. But not for Severus, because as Ella said, he didn't trust anyone.

Ella had proven to him that she was not out to sabotage him in quidditch but it was difficult for Severus to believe that she really had wanted an innocent conversation. He had never really had one of those.

Now, Severus stood there in an empty potions classroom by himself. For the first time he actually wandered if maybe he was just as wrong about not trusting her as he was about the time he thought she was just using him and trying to sabotage his quidditch skills. He didn't like being wrong and that was something he found he seemed to always be when it came to Ella.

But at that moment, being wrong seemed a hell of a lot easier than being right for Severus.

End Chapter Six

**Please review! Thanks to those who reviewed last time, I really appreciate it!**


	7. Across the Enemies Line

**I apologize for the delay in the update. Truth be told, I have this chapter written for nearly a week but I was very nervous about posting due to my trying to be delicate with the plot (as hard as that may seem to you after reading this chapter) but also because of the last (sad, but true) installment of Harry Potter. I have just finished reading it in less than two days. I laughed and I cried, REALLY cried. So, bravo to J.K. Rowling for her amazing series that is nothing short of a masterpiece. I admit it's going to make it difficult for me to keep writing this fic after reading this latest book, especially it's storyline surrounding Snape. But also due to the fact that the question I was trying to answer with my fic was brilliantly answered by Mrs. Rowling herself. HOWEVER, I have an entire storyline and I will try and keep to it. I hope you will keep up with it as well. Thank you for your reviews and I hope you will continue to give me your feedback. **

Ch.7 Across the Enemies Line

That night after dinner, Ella made her way towards the Room of Requirement on the third floor corridor. Practicing quidditch had been easy to do unseen due to the privacy of the clearing. Potions lessons on the other hand had proven a bit more difficult. At first, Ella and Severus tried using abandoned classrooms around the castle but after nearly being discovered twice, Severus reluctantly took Ella to the Room of Requirement.

In many ways it had been convenient because it saved them from sneaking into the dungeons to brew potions.

The room provided a sturdy antique desk for the two to study and an entire shelf full of ingredients that changed with every visit depending on the particular potion they would work on. Three cauldrons were placed at the far right of the room with burners, already lit, underneath them.

Ella was nearly twenty minutes early as she walked in front of the room three times while intently thinking of studying for potions. As the door appeared she took a deep breath. She didn't know why she was nervous, it wasn't as if he was going to talk about the night before. Like most of their arguments, it would probably just be forgotten as soon as she walked into the room.

She was early today though and hoped he probably wouldn't be in the room already. She wanted to look over the lesson plan for the day so when he showed up, she would know what she needed to work on. Plus it would give her an opportunity to think without his usual sarcastic remarks. Smoothing out her skirt, she took one last breath, then stepped into the room. Upon entering her shoulders slumped in disappointkment as she realized her hopes were in vain.

Severus sat at the desk obviously concentrating very hard on what he was working on. He didn't notice as Ella walked in. For a moment she just looked at him, then realized something was different.

It was a rare moment when she caught him completely alone. Whenever she saw Severus in the Great Hall or in the library he always seemed so stiff. He would sit up straight, always being aware of his surroundings. Now, as Ella looked upon him his entire composure seemed so different.

From the looks of the room he had been there for awhile. He had taken his robe off, something he never did. He had also loosened his tie and rolled up his sleeves. Instead of the upright sitting position he always seemed to maintain, he had chosen to prop his feet up on the desk and lean back in his chair. A book was open in his lap while he wrote determinedly on a sheet of parchment tucked into it. He gave a disappointed sigh as his right hand moved through his long hair.

He looked so…relaxed, so in his element.

He looked….

_Quite good._

Ella mentally slapped herself as she realized what had just gone through her head. Almost as if hearing her thoughts, Severus finally looked up and noticed her standing there.

"Hello." Ella calmly greeted.

Severus suddenly sat up straight, back to his normal composure. Ella let out a small breath, disappointed.

_Got it, back to the same old Snape. _

"You're early." Snape stated as he rolled his sleeves back down.

"I'm always early."

"Not this early." Snape said as he folded his arms.

"I just wanted to go through the lesson plan for today." Ella said innocently.

Snape made a gesture that said by all means as he tightened his tie and put his robe back on.

Ella sat at the other chair and began to read through the assignment, while Snape appeared to go back to whatever he was working on when Ella first walked in.

Ella began to read through the uses of unicorn hair, she understood everything about why it was used. The part she had issues with was the instructions. There were three potions to choose from that involved unicorn hair, all were potions for illness and all were quite complicated to brew.

Looking over each potion carefully she saw that each was just as difficult as the other. Finally having given up on trying to find the small details that could make one seem all the easier she resorted to the same methods of decision making that she used as a child when picking out the sweets she wanted at the candy store. She closed her eyes, moved her hands around, then opened her eyes a second later to see which potion her hand had come to reside on.

"What the hell are you doing?" came Snape's dry voice.

Her thoughts breaking away from the task at hand, Ella looked up.

"I'm deciding which potion to work on."

The response was as she expected. Snape rolled his eyes and muttered something about lousy childish tactics then continued on with his research.

A few minutes later, Ella went to the shelves and began sorting out which ingredients she would need to complete the potion.

She began to organize everything at her workstation, while Severus watched her carefully out of the corner of his eye…making sure she had chosen the right ingredients for the potion.

"You forgot…"

"The Lapis en ocron…and no I didn't." Ella said smoothly.

Severus continued to watch her as she prepared the materials. Every day he tested her, whether she realized it or not. The longer she could get through a potion without any of his intervention, the better. After all, she couldn't rely on him during their N.E.W.Ts for help.

Upon their first few lessons, it was very difficult for both Severus and Ella. Severus got frustrated very easily with her. He hadn't quite prepared himself for the fact that she was not going to get something right just because he explained how to do it properly. It was something that unnerved him because he wa s baffled as to why she simply couldn't do it.

So, as he did with every other problem he couldn't solve at first, he began to study the obstacle before him. He began to observe Ella during their lessons…but also in their other classes together, the classes she excelled in.

At first there seemed to be no obvious explanation as to why she could not comprehend one subject as well as the others. He simply watched her fumble around nervously in potions lab and then watched her shine in Defense Against the Dark Arts, Transfiguration, Ancient Runes, and Charms.

It was during a particular lesson in Charms that the puzzle as to Ella's incompetence in potions began to unravel.

Ella had come into Charms that day with the appearance only a night with no sleep and all study could provide. Professor Flitwick seemed understanding despite that she showed up to class fifteen minutes late. Severus had not been too happy with the Professor's leniency considering the fact that if Ella had been a Slytherin, points would have been deducted.

In any case Ella had shown up just as they were performing a charm that turned any solid object into water. The incantation for the charm was written on the board in Flitwicks less than legible script. The incantation was long and difficult to pronounce. Severus had watched in amusement as several Gryffindors set their objects aflame and others seemed to have given theirs mobility and were now chasing the various objects around the room.

He watched as Ella tried to mutter the incantation but couldn't even get through the first verse. It was easy to tell she had no energy to put any serious effort into the subject today. She seemed to have resided herself to silently practicing the simple wand movements on the object, a silver bowl, when suddenly…the bowl gradually disintegrated and all that was left was small shower of water upon Ella's desk. Flitwick had been so excited over Ella's small accomplishment but Severus was left perplexed. Ella had just performed a difficult charm that the rest of the class was having a hard time doing properly with an incantation, but that she was able to do wordlessly.

It wasn't the rarest thing in the world for a wizard to perform bouts of magic without the use of incantations but it was quite advanced and usually well above the ability of a 7th year student. Yet, a very exhausted, seventeen-year-old, muggle born witch had just done it.

It was then that Severus started to take note of her ease in these courses, her confidence, and her obvious talent. It soon became very apparent that Ella had a natural feel within these subjects, within her actual ability to control the power and energy she put into her spells and such. This contrasted sharply with what she was in potions.

Ella had no confidence in the subject, she seemed to have resigned herself to the fact that no matter how she succeeded in her other courses, she simply would not succeed here. She had no problems with memorization and knew most of the facts behind how potions came about and what they were used for but when it came to brewing them or altering them for a specific purpose, she was lost. Potions was not a skill inherent to Ella, it was logic and Ella wasn't a logical thinker. He, on the other hand was.

It was here that Severus started to notice the contrast to him and Ella. It was plainly obvious before, but now it was almost remarkable. There she was a Gryffindor muggle born who was loved by mostly everyone, attractive, fiery-tempered, and apparently good at all the things he needed to put extra effort into.

Severus was a powerful wizard but unlike Ella he did not have quite the natural feel for subjects like Charms and Transfiguration. He excelled at both subjects but not because he was inherently good at them but because he practiced. Potions was natural to him, logic was his way of thinking. A potion could be adjusted in many various ways including being manipulated to only work on a single person or to last for a certain period of time. Knowing how to make these manipulations was where the logic had to come in and was what made the subject a difficult one for Ella.

Upon realizing this, Severus frustration cooled as he now knew what to focus Ella on. He could not "change her way of thinking" to be logical, so to speak. However, he could teach her how to look at a potion and see what could be manipulated then focus on how to go about doing it. Inevitably he had created a sort of process for Ella, to assist her in the subject.

Severus thoughts focused back on the bubbling cauldron in front of Ella.

Soon after she began to brew the potion, she had a question for him.

"How long should I let the mermaid scales simmer before adding the unicorn hair?"

Severus looked over her shoulder at the cauldron.

"Slughorn would tell you ten minutes…I would say twenty if not more."

Ella gave him a pointed look and asked

"Do you always have some contradiction to Slughorn's instructions?"

Severus mumbled under his breath, "Only most of the time."

Then Ella did something, he hadn't expected. She laughed. Severus tried to give her a serious look but that only seemed to make her laugh more. As he looked back down at Ella's cauldron, Ella swore she saw the smallest smile on his face.

XXXXXXXX

Severus felt a feeling of relief and freedom hit him as he walked out of Filch's office for the last time that week.

No more detentions.

However the feeling didn't last long before he felt a hand grab him by the shoulder and turn him around.

There staring him in the face was Sirius Black.

"Why do you suddenly seem to have a little more bounce in your step, Snivellus?" Black asked dangerously.

Severus raised an eyebrow, "I just spent the last five nights practically imprisoned with the schools two biggest idiots. I assure you anyone would have a little _more bounce in their step_, as you put it, upon realizing the torture has indeed ended."

Severus said coolly as he pulled Black's hand off of his shoulder.

Before Severus could turn and walk away though, he was assaulted by another idiotic question.

"What were you doing talking to Ella Brady last week?"

Severus almost smiled. Black was still chasing after Ella and he had all but said what he was really trying to find out. So, Severus decided to mess with the naïve Gryffindor and give him some food for thought…or plant the seeds of doubt as it were.

"Worried Black? Scared she might prefer Slytherins to the constant pursuit of a certain Gryffindor?" Severus asked daringly. Black almost lunged at him but Potter held him back.

"He's not worth it Sirius, we don't want to get into detention all over again."

Snape just gave him a small smirk and turned around, heading towards the dungeons.

Sirius glared as he watched Snape walk down the staircase. He finally felt James loosen the grip on his arm.

"Sirius, he's just yanking your chain and you're letting him!"

"But, he was talking about Ella!"

"Oh, cmon! She would never be caught dead dating the greasy git!"

After a moment of silence from Sirius, James continued.

"You really need to get over her, mate. It's been what now…two years? You can't keep putting yourself through this ongoing cycle."

Sirius looked down at his feet.

"I wish it were that easy."

XXXXXXXX

Ella sat in the empty potions classroom, constantly glancing at her watch.

Right then Severus walked through the door.

She glared at him. "You're late!"

Severus seemed to make a sort of shrug with his shoulders as he simply walked towards the wall and tapped his wand to the passage.

"Had a little run in with your _boyfriend_." Snape said disgusted.

Ella glared at the sound of the word boyfriend but knew better than to make a remark about it. Snape loved pushing people's buttons and she had learned quite quickly to not give him the satisfaction of responding, when he pushed hers.

Snape didn't smile his usual smirk at her usual silence. He gave her a serious look as they walked through the passage.

"You didn't tell me he saw us talking on the pitch."

"I didn't know until last night. What did he say to you?"

Severus stopped and actually looked a little guilty. He simply turned and looked at Ella.

Ella's eyes widened. Already seeing where this was going she repeated the question.

"What did he say to you?"

"He asked what I was doing talking to you?"

"And you did what…"

"Pretty much played on his paranoia and pissed him off…"

This was obviously not the correct response because before Severus knew it Ella had punched the wall, causing him to step back for a second.

"Dammit Severus! What the hell were you thinking?!"

Before Severus could respond, Ella continued.

"We agreed, we wouldn't let anyone know about out agreement!"

"I didn't let him bloody know about what was going on! He was already suspicious before he talked to me."

"…so you just decided to confirm it? Despite how much you don't like him, Sirius isn't stupid. He knows something is going on and I wouldn't put it past him to start snooping around. Now I get the fact that you have this little rivalry with him but when it comes to our arrangement you need to swallow your pride and NOT egg him on!"

Ella stopped and waited for Severus respond. But found him looking down at the floor…brooding.

She continued. "We need to keep acting normally. Remember, no one can find out about this!"

Severus now looked up, his eyes looking dangerous. He stood up straight, towering over her. "Are you done?"

Ella stood up straight as well and got within centimeters from him.

"I don't know…are you done being an insolent child?" Ella replied roughly.

After having what seemed like the world's longest stare down, Severus stepped back and continued down the passage. While Ella let out the breath she had been holding.

It's not that she was scared of Severus it was just that he hid so much and because of this she knew so little about him. What she did know though was that Severus and potions seemed to share very similar qualities.

Both were decisive, straight-forward…and unpredictable. The unpredictable put her just a little bit on edge every time they got into a squabble. She just didn't know what he would or wouldn't do.

XXXXXXXX

Out in the clearing Ella and Severus were both chasing the snitch, which was now nowhere to be found.

Once again their argument forgotten as they mounted their brooms, Now there they were, their eyes sharp, squinting for the snitch in the darkness.

Suddenly, Ella almost fell off her broom as she caught sight of the small flying ball and went after it.

Severus watched as Ella darted in one direction, following her closely, the two teenagers disappeared into the trees, darting branches the whole way. Ella was on the snitch the whole time and Severus knew that if he didn't do something quick, she would win yet another match.

He couldn't catch up to the point she was at right now and she was beginning to close in on it. They were still in the trees and the higher up they went the more difficult it was to navigate through all the branches. Watching the snitch, Severus could already see it was heading back towards the clearing. Suddenly a plan formed in his head and without hesitation, Severus made a sharp dive, riding low amidst the tree trunks as the snitch soared higher.

Severus was able to fly more quickly due to the lack of branches on the bottom of the tree trunks. As he looked above him he could tell the branches were beginning to slow Ella down and the snitch began to get farther away from her. Carefully wizzing around the trees Severus was flying directly under the snitch, Ella only two feet behind it now. In one graceful move, Severus pulled his broom towards him and zoomed up right between Ella and the snitch, feeling the small gold ball now within the grasp of his palm.

As he enjoyed the feel of victory upon him, he turned expecting an angry Ella, but what he found was not what he expected. The look on Ella's face was not one of anger…there was pride?

"Good job." Ella said before descending back towards the ground in the clearing.

Severus was not far behind her.

As they both landed on the ground Severus watched Ella. She was quiet…something that was usually a rare treat for Severus. But now he was starting to wander what was going through her head.

Without looking up at him Ella took the snitch from Severus, placing it in her pocket and began to shrink their brooms.

Still unable to meet his gaze she began to speak in a low voice.

"You utilized strategy today to obtain the snitch." She stated.

Severus remained silent and she continued.

"I didn't teach you that. You have begun to have your own instincts about the game."

Severus was now confused. Was he not supposed to have instincts in quidditch?

"Is that supposed to mean something?" Severus asked slowly.

Ella smirked and then finally her eyes met his.

"Yes...it means I have no more to teach you. You're ready."

XXXXXXXX

_"I don't get it Remus." Harry said, suddenly interrupting the tired Professor's story. _

_"Get what?" Remus said, as he rubbed his eyes._

_"Ella and Snape. I mean I get the whole house rivalry but even Hermione used to tutor Slytherins and despite that we don't like each other, it wasn't that big of a deal. I mean it's only tutoring. Why did they have to keep it such a huge secret?"_

_Remus sighed. "Those were very uncertain times. Muggle borns were treated like second-class citizens. Some of them couldn't even get jobs based on their heritage. People called it tainted magic. It was a time of huge social change in the wizarding world, which is why Voldemort thrived as a sort of hero in some peoples minds. So for a Slytherin to be seen with a Gryffindor, a muggle-born Gryffindor at that, was outrageous. For one to be helping the other was unthinkable."_

_"So, Slytherins have always been terrible to muggle borns like Ella?"_

_Remus face suddenly became very grave._

_"Looking back on it Harry, one side was just as cruel as the other. Yes, the Slytherins were notorious for doing everything in their power to oppress anyone that wasn't of their house and of their blood. But, a big part of that was because they were also…persecuted essentially for being a Slytherin and from an old wizarding family." _

_Looking back out the window Remus continued._

_"You could say that the war had already begun long before the fighting had…and Ella and Severus, both from their respective sides, were caught in the middle of it…"_

As Ella walked down the hall towards Defense Against the Dark Arts she heard a scream.

Quickly rounding a corner, she found none other than Lucius Malfoy and a group of Slytherin's standing in front of a 4th year girl whom Ella recognized from Hufflepuff. Ella watched in horror as a long black snake wrapped it's way up the girls body.

Lucius Malfoy held his wand out, from the looks of it, he was directing the snake in which directions to go.

"Now now, there's no need to scream. As long as you don't move, you should be fine..and well that doesn't seem to be a problem right now, does it?" Lucius said grinning.

It was then that Ella realized Malfoy had the girl in a body binding spell.

Without another thought and a flick of her wand Ella had turned the snake into a long party streamer, as it fell to the floor around the girls still body. Then muttering a quick counter spell, she freed the girl from the body bind.

Realizing she could move once again, the girl grabbed her bag and ran past Ella.

Lucius smile faltered.

"Oh, Brady why do you have to be such a stupid little bitch who ruins everything?" Lucius asked nonchalantly.

Suddenly realizing she was now completely alone in a corridor with four Slytherins, Ella tried not to show her nervousness as she shrugged her shoulder coyly.

"Because bastards like yourself don't have the balls to pick on someone their own size."

Lucius stepped closer to Ella as he began circling her like a vulture. Ella was hastily trying to think of what she would do next when she noticed Severus come up unnoticed behind the small group of Slytherin's. For a second she saw the reality of her predicament register on his face, then he caught her eye and his expression became unreadable.

Lucius continued, "Are you trying to insinuate that a pathetic little mud-blood like yourself is anywhere close to me in size or stature?"

The group of Slytherin's laughed at this.

Ella would not back down from this though.

"Oh and what is stature to you Malfoy? Money? You're so pathetic you couldn't even get onto the Slytherin quidditch team on your own. Daddy had to buy the position for you. Just like he has to buy everything else for you."

Ella knew she had hit a nerve as she watched Lucius eyes begin to fill with anger. She snuck a glance at Severus again, he still was just standing there, doing nothing. Not to mention Lucius was getting closer and closer by the second.

Suddenly the distance between them closed and Lucius lifted Ella's chin with his hand.

Lucius eyes were cold and filled with hatred as he said huskily.

"Well then maybe if you're a good little bitch I'll consider paying you for certain _activities_ you could perform for me sometime."

Ella's eyes widened. Lucius had always talked to her as if she were dirt but now he was talking to her as if she was his whore and that got her more than calling her a mud blood.

Pushing his hand away from her face Ella gave Lucius a cold smile, " Thanks Malfoy, but I wouldn't want to put Crabbe and Goyle out of a job."

The group of Slytherin's roared with laughter at Ella's comment. But before she had time to revel in her small victory Lucius had pushed her to the ground and was making to back hand her when a ray of blue light hit his arm, causing Malfoy to scream out in pain.

"Step back Malfoy or your other arm is next."

Came the voice of Remus Lupin.

Ella turned.

There standing behind her was Remus, Sirius, James, Peter, and Lily. All of their wands raised.

It was then Ella took in the scene in front of her. Never had she seen such an illustration of the social boundaries that she had lived inside of for seven years. She couldn't take her eyes off Severus. His eyes bore into her and his expression said everything that she felt.

It was bewilderment. The strangeness of seeing the other on separate sides of what could be a battle field. They had their loyalties but it suddenly seemed so surreal to be in this situation where they were both on opposite sides.

It was then that Ella realized why it was so strange. They weren't friends…but they were no longer enemies. They had changed. They had respect for one another, on occasion they even had a civil conversation. They would argue but they would not be cruel to each other. They had indeed changed…but they had forgotten the rest of the world had not.

Ella turned to her left and looked at Sirius, still focused, holding out his wand. His words echoed through her head.

_He's not one of us, Ella!_

Ella turned her gaze back towards Severus.

He was still just a Slytherin.

_ He didn't help me. _

As the tension between the two groups seemed to grow, Ella watched in anticipation as many of the Slytherin's already had their wands out and ready. Severus was one of the exceptions.

The stare down continued, only a spark was needed now to begin the fight.

Then just as Lucius Malfoy began to open his mouth, his wand swished in one direction then the other and…

"Would someone like to explain what is going on out here?!"

The stunned group of teenagers looked up to see no other than the headmaster himself.

Dumbledore looked grave as he surveyed the scene before him, taking in all the details.

Eleven 7th years, most of them with their wands raised.

Ella hung her head and stared at the ground, knowing that the impending fate could not be good.

After a long pause she finally heard Dumbledore's voice boom.

"Fifty points from Slytherin and Gryffindor! The next time I find a scene like this, suspensions will be made."

Ella looked up in surprise. It was then that she noticed there was no twinkle in Dumbledore's eye. For once she found herself being very afraid of the headmaster.

Dumbledore met every person's eye, then said in a firm tone, "Get to class."

Ella looked up to find Severus but he had already walked away.

End Chapter Seven


	8. Life's Little Prejudices

Ch. 8 Life's Little Prejudices

Ella was angry. The realization of what had happened in the corridor between the group of Slytherins and the Marauders had finally caught up with her as she had hurried to class.

He didn't do anything. I was alone in a corridor with a group of Slytherin's as they watched Malfoy tease and threaten me…and he didn't do anything.

The fact that Ella couldn't take her anger out on something in Defense Against the Dark Arts class didn't help anything either. Rather than exercises today on counter spells and jinxes; Professor Cobbleton had decided today was a lecture day.

After class Ella glared at Severus' back, willing him to turn and face her, to see how angry she truly was with him. Livid even.

But, he did not. He packed up his things as usual and headed out of the classroom none the wiser about Ella's thoughts.

However, as unnoticed as Ella's mood was by Severus it did not go unnoticed by Remus who was now jogging to keep up with Ella's fast pace.

"Ella!" Yelled Remus, causing a few Hufflepuff's to turn his way.

But Ella kept walking, determined on getting to Gryffindor Tower.

"Ella." Remus panted, catching up to her.

"Go away, Remus." Ella said sternly.

But Remus did not give up easily.

He quickly put his way in Ella's path and gently put his hands upon her shoulders, refusing to budge.

"Ella…you can't let Lucius get to you." Remus said breathlessly.

But Ella wasn't looking at him, she was choosing to look past him over his shoulder.

As if reading her like a book Remus suddenly understood.

"This isn't about Lucius is it?"

Ella's eyes fell to the floor.

"What's this about then?" Remus pressed one more time.

Five minutes later…

"He's such a filthy bastard!" Ella screamed.

Remus tried to get Ella's attention for the umpteenth time but once again she continued with her rant.

"Just a greasy haired prat who's nothing but an ass hole to everyone!"

Ella threw another one of her books at the wall as she emphasized the words ass hole.

Remus ducked as the book flew over his head and made contact with the stone wall.

"Feel better?" Remus poked, slightly amused by Ella's outburst.

But in a matter of seconds all the amusement seemed to be sucked out of the situation. Ella's eyes were downcast and Ella was quiet, he was about to make a joke when he saw a tear fall from her eyes.

"Ella?" He whispered.

She brought her head back up and wiped her eyes.

"I'm just so angry." She whispered.

Leaning back against the wall, she put her head in her hands and slid down to the floor. Closing her eyes for a second she endured the silence that seemed ten times louder than any words she could ever scream.

The silence only lasted long enough until Remus finally broke it.

"Ella you can't be angry with him. You told him yourself you both needed to act naturally around each other and there would have been nothing natural about Severus Snape stepping in front of a group of his fellow Slytherin's to defend a Gryffindor."

Ella's head shot up. "Great, you're defending him now?!"

Remus` eyes widened in surprise. "Ella, you're being irrational! You can't tell him to do one thing and then expect him to do another!"

"I wasn't expecting him to defend me with the insults, but Lucius was about to hit me!"

"And I can assure you, Severus saw us coming. He knew you would be alright."

This still didn't seem to change Ella's mood.

"And what if you hadn't come along? What then? Would he have done something or just continued to stand there and watch?"

Remus now stood up and walked over towards his friend. Once he stood in front of Ella he kneeled down until his eyes were level with hers and said slowly, "That's something you're going to have to ask him."

Rather than respond Ella just looked away from Remus` gaze unsure of what to say.

After another moments silence Remus posed another question to Ella. "Ella, why do you care?"

Ella sat up straighter suddenly.

"I..I don't."

Remus gave her a disbelieving look but didn't push the matter any further.

"Look, he's a Slytherin and on top of that he's Snape. He doesn't care about anybody, so don't get your hopes up for him to actually do the noble thing in tight situations like this last one."

Nodding her head a little, Ella looked back down at the floor. Remus was right. Once again the realization hit her like a brick as she realized that the rest of the world was as it was a month ago, Slytherin's hating Gryffindors and vice versa.

She had thought for a second that perhaps her and Severus had only changed but upon Remus` words she felt as if she was thrown back into reality. She had allowed herself the absurd notion that her and Severus could actually be on a level that didn't involve wanting to kill each other and she thought they actually had been. In truth she knew she felt…betrayed when he didn't do anything. Betrayal was such an interesting emotion for her to feel especially towards him. For her to feel betrayal there would have had to have been some sort of loyalty or friendship there…but there hadn't been. No, the rest of the world had not changed but perhaps it had not been her and Severus that had changed either, perhaps it had only been her that had.

At the end of the day they were what they were and her and Severus were not friends. She shouldn't have such high expectations for him.

XXXXXXXX

Severus had woken that morning with a sense of nervousness. He had awaited in anticipation of this moment for over a month and now the opportunity was upon him.

Lunch had just ended in the Great Hall, he had arrived quite late and most of his house had already finished and headed back towards the dungeons or off to their next classes before he had gotten there.

He quickly ate his lunch then with not so much as a glance at anyone, he left the Great Hall, letting his long legs carry him back towards the bowels of the castle. There was purpose in his walk as his shoulders stood straight and his face holding an intent look even as he shifted his school bag from side to side.

Upon entering through the bare stonewall that served as the entrance to the Slytherin's common room Severus` eyes began darting about looking for one of his housemates.

It didn't take long for Severus to locate him. There in a corner sat Zane Zabini speaking with a few of his friends.

Taking a deep breath, Severus stood up straight.

It's now or never. This is what you have been working so hard for, no time to be a coward.

With that resolution now in his head, he made his way over towards the Captain of the Slytherin's quidditch team.

He walked towards the small group and was thankful when Zabini noticed his appearance.

"Snape, how's it going?"

Severus gave his usual shrug to the arbitrary question most people used as a greeting.

"I was actually hoping I could have a word with you, if you have a minute." Severus said calmly.

Zabini nodded his head, "Sure."

The two stepped away from the small group and made their way to an empty part of the room.

"What can I do for you Snape?"

Here it goes.

"I was just wandering if you were aware of the rule that states that a person's position on the quidditch team can be challenged?"

Zane narrowed his eyes for a second obviously wandering what Severus was getting at.

"Yeah, I'm aware of it. But, the only way you can challenge someone's position on the team is if you compete against that person and prove yourself to be better."

"Well, that's what I'm doing. I'd like to challenge Lucius` for the spot of Seeker on the team."

Whatever Zabini had been expecting to hear, this had not been it. Severus had known Zabini would not jump at the idea. Despite that Lucius had lost to Ella every match with Gryffindor he did manage to win a few matches. For the rest that he lost, his Dad's money helped the Slytherin captain cope with it. On the other hand Severus was invoking a school-wide rule. If Zabini did not submit to it, he could put the whole team in trouble with Dumbledore.

Snape watched Zabini's face, knowing all the same thoughts were going through his head as he weighed his options.

At last Zabini spoke "Alright. I'll let Lucius know. Be on the pitch tomorrow after dinner."

Taking a moment to lean against the wall, he suddenly felt a little lighter but at the same time even more nervous than before. He had officially thrown his hat into the ring, as it were. Now, he had to follow through. Tomorrow would decide if he and Ella's practices had paid off.

Then Regulus Black walked into the room and interrupted his thoughts.

"Hey Snape, don't you have a class to get to?"

Severus stopped, looking at the clock on the mantle.

Then threw his bag over his shoulder and quickly walked back out of the common room and up towards the 5th floor. Even the prospect of being late couldn't dampen Severus` excitement at that moment. This was really happening, he had made his challenge and now he had an actual shot at obtaining the position.

Quickly walking down the hall towards Defense Against the Dark Arts class, he was stopped.

There in the middle of the hallway he spotted the turned backs of many of his housemates, all of whom were watching something,

"…such a stupid little bitch who ruins everything?" came Lucius` cold voice.

Severus now was right behind the small group of Slytherins. There before him was Lucius circling a very alone looking Ella, with a very dangerous smile on his face. She was defiant towards Lucius but it was plain to see she was nervous and every step Malfoy got closer the more nervous she seemed to get.

Ella looked away from Lucius towards the group of Slytherins in front of her it was then that her eyes locked with his and just as quickly as it had come…

all the excitement Severus had been feeling only seconds ago quickly disappeared.

XXXXXXXX

Ella sat at the back of the library with three potions texts in front of her. She had a very big potions exam coming up in two weeks that she could not afford to fail.

So, here it was another Friday night in the library vigorously trying to cram as much knowledge into her head as possible. She was so enthralled with her reading that she did not notice the tall figure come up directly behind her chair.

Ella leaned closer towards a text to read the small, ancient, print. She consulted a table of potent sleeping potions.

The figure behind her slowly leaned his head closer and closer towards her neck.

Ella scrawled a few more notes on sleeping potions, emphasizing some key points.

The looming figure's mouth was now just above her ear.

"Ella…" the voice whispered.

Suddenly Ella jumped about five feet in the air as her chair fell backwards and hit the floor with a loud crash, causing several students who were buried in the stacks to say, "Shhh…!"

Wide-eyed Ella turned around to face the creepy…"SIRIUS!" Ella exclaimed in a loud whisper.

Sirius on the other hand could not keep as quiet, he was laughing freely at her astonishment.

"You know I hate it when you do that!" Ella whispered, clearly agitated.

Still laughing Sirius said, "I know but you have to give me some credit, you still jump as high today as you did when we were eleven!"

Ella just glared at him.

With more peels of laughter Sirius continued, "Hey, If you didn't study so damn hard, you wouldn't be caught off guard so much."

Ella breathed out. Remembering how much of an ass Sirius had been the last time she had spoken to him

"What do you want Sirius?" Ella asked exasperated.

Sirius stopped laughing.

"Oh, c`mon Ella. Don't be like that."

"How do you expect me to be Sirius? You were a right prat the other day and suddenly you expect me to forget about it?"

Ella sat back in her chair, which she had just straightened out while Sirius` watched her carefully. His entire demeanor changed within an instant. The boy who had just been laughing to his hearts content only a moment before now appeared very solemn.

Ella had now looked back down at her book, despite that both of them knew she wasn't reading a single word out of it.

Sirius chose to sit on the table next to her books and all the notes that had been born from hours and hours of studying.

"I'm sorry about the other night. You're right I shouldn't have been such an ass. We just miss you is all. You're off studying all the time. It feels like the only times we get to see you is during class and quidditch practice."

Ella managed to look up at Sirius now with a bit of a skeptical look on her face.

Sirius then motioned with his hand to their surroundings, "Or…we have to venture into this horrid place to find you."

Against her better judgment Ella laughed a little.

Sirius smiled at his own joke.

"Now, c'mon the others sent me to fetch you. We have come to a group consensus and decided that you're not wasting another perfectly good Friday night in here. Think of all the debauchery you have been missing out on!"

Sirius stood up off the desk and began to pick up Ella's books for her, making it clear she had no choice in whether she got to stay or go.

"James is nicking the firewhiskey and the butterbeer from the Three Broomsticks as we speak, Peter and Mary are off searching for an empty classroom. And of course our trusty chaperones Lily and Remus are supplying the music. Thomas, Orsin, and Amy will also be partaking in our juvenile fun this evening. Any questions?" Sirius posed to the still scowling Ella who sat with her arms crossed trying very hard to glare at him.

"You know I'm still mad at you."

Sirius just grinned and grabbed Ella, pulling her up to a standing position then said in a jovial tone, "Ella Maureen Brady, we both know that's not true so quit with your lies and let's go."

As hard as Ella tried she couldn't suppress her grin and before she knew it Sirius was leading her out of the library.

XXXXXXXX

"I'd like to propose a toast to all of us…" Orsin Wiley slurred while attempting to stand still long enough to raise the tumbler of Firewhiskey he now held in his right hand

Orsin had been a good friend of the Gryffindors since their second year when he helped Remus, Ella, and James narrowly escape a detention from Filch while sneaking down to the kitchens after hours. Orsin had been working late on an astronomy project and had seen the three Gryffindors about to be caught by Filch. Ever the quick thinking Ravenclaw, Orsin had used expelliarmus on a suit of armor down the hallway, diverting Filch's attention. Since then he had been a good friend to the three Gryffindors and a constant presence at their gatherings.

Orsin continued his speech to the small group of teenagers as he wobbled from one foot to the other, "I'd especially like to thank James for collecting the…refreshments for tonight…and.." BANG. Orsin had finally managed to topple over, Peter and Remus managing to catch him just in time.

Everyone laughed and applauded as the two boys helped Orsin to a nearby chair.

Ella turned to Sirius laughing, "Only an hour into it and Orsin is already beyond pissed."

Sirius smiled, "Yeah, he never could hold his liquor very well."

Just then James and Lily approached them.

"So, are we having fun tonight Ms. Brady?" James asked in a mock serious tone.

Ella smiled brightly, "I daresay we are, Mr. Potter."

It was true. For all the weeks Ella had spent stressing over potions and the mystery that was Severus Snape she had forgotten what it was like to have some fun with her friends. She couldn't remember the last time she had laughed so much, although the firewhiskey was beginning to have a bit of an effect on her, as she felt herself becoming a little more light headed.

Muggle and wizard records alike were playing as the small group around them joked loudly with one another.

The empty classroom Peter and Ella's dorm mate, Mary, had managed to find was near the Divination room. About seventeen people had shown up to the small get together. After casting the muffliato charm on the room, the records began to play, the drinking had started, a small game of exploding snap was under way, and several couples were dancing.

All and all it had turned out to be exactly what Ella needed.

As Ella took another swig of her drink, an old muggle song began to play over the speaker.

Lily apparently recognized the song as well, it was an upbeat song that was enjoyable to dance to.

With an evil glint in her eye Lily turned toward Sirius, " Come and dance with me Sirius!"

Sirius gave Lily a pleading look, "You know I'm terrible at dancing! Go back out with James he has been doing a good job of not tripping too much out there."

James then decided his input was needed, "…and my feet hurt from trying to keep up with her all night. Go and dance with her at least for my feet's sake."

Sirius made a show of being reluctant but was gladly pulled out to dance by Lily.

James and Ella laughed as Sirius attempted to mimick Lily's moves, which didn't end well. A few minutes later a yelp was heard from Lily as Sirius` foot came down hard on her toes. After another few minutes of watching Lily's relentless attempts at teaching Sirius how to do the hustle Ella and James walked back towards a table to grab more drinks.

Taking a drink of his firewhiskey, James turned to Ella, "We're happy you came tonight…especially Sirius."

Ella knew what James was indicating but refused to acknowledge it.

Instead she nodded, "I am too. It's been a hell of a week…or more of a month. It's good to be out."

"Are you okay? I mean the whole run-in with Malfoy today I'm sure was less than entertaining."

Ella frowned at her drink, relishing the feel of the alcohol course through her body as she still felt the tingling warm in her chest from her last gulp of firewhiskey.

"I'm fine. Thanks to you guys. You all got there right as it was about to get a little too interesting."

James nodded and took another drink.

"Well, be careful around him. He seems to be quite partial to you when it comes to getting into trouble."

Ella laughed a little now.

"Yes well, he's not so tough when he's on a broomstick now is he?"

James laughed as well, "No, he certainly is not."

After another minute or so Ella put her hand out to him, "Come and dance with me!" she said a little dazed, the alcohol beginning to hit her at full force.

James was not much more sober though, "But my feet…"

"Oh, that's nothing another drink won't fix, now let's go!"

James laughed sheepishly but soon the two were dancing next to Sirius and Lily as they all fumbled around to the music.

Remus, who usually stopped himself from drinking too much and also generally preferred not to dance, had made the mistake of matching one of the Hufflepuff's drink for drink, and surprised everyone when he came and cut in between Peter and Mary…it was even more surprising that Remus was asking to dance with Peter…not Mary.

Ella, who had finally relieved Lily of dance lessons, had been trying to show Sirius some steps when Thomas Jordan joined them on the floor. For the next few hours everyone enjoyed themselves as they all drank, danced, laughed, and talked. As the clock struck 2 a.m. the small party began to die down.

Lily and Thomas were still relatively sober and began to help the Gryffindors back towards the dormitories in small groups. Some of the Hufflepuffs had left a little earlier and had volunteered to take Orsin back to Ravenclaw tower.

James, Remus, and Sirius were all trying to hold each other up as they navigated their way towards the door.

Ella had sobered up a bit in the past hour and was a little more clear minded then she had been earlier, albeit still a little drunk.

As everyone was preparing to leave Ella gathered together her books into her bag as her and Sirius had come straight from the library earlier that evening. It was then she realized she had forgotten the notes she had been writing in the library.

Shit!

Madame Pince usually cleaned up the library early in the morning before it opened and if there was any loose parchment lying around you could bet it went directly into the waste bins.

Ella squinted her eyes, trying to see a little more clearly in order to make sure that they definitely weren't there. Unfortunately, the notes were nowhere in sight.

"Ella, are you coming?" Lily asked.

Lily helped Ella stand up as Ella tried to explain the situation to Lily.

"Well, you can just copy my notes. It's not a problem."

"No, Lily. They aren't notes from class, they're notes from my session with…"

Ella looked over to see the boys watching them, as they waited to leave the room.

"Oh…" Lily said in understanding.

"Are you sure he won't give them to you again?" Lily asked.

Ella actually laughed at Lily, still a little giddy from the firewhiskey, "Do you honestly have to ask?"

"I have to go and get them Lily, I need those notes. Especially for that upcoming exam. I need to go and get them right now!"

"No, Ella. You're not in any shape to go wandering the castle right now. Especially with Filch probably out."

"Then…go with me."

Lily looked over to the boys once again as Thomas attempted to help them walk…attempted being the operative word.

Lily turned back towards Ella, "Thomas can't make it back to Gryffindor Tower with those three and not get caught. It's going to take two of us at least."

Ella was discouraged but knew she needed to get to the library and at that moment all the firewhiskey in her system seemed to give her a sudden courage to not be scared of getting caught by Filch.

"I'm going then Lily, I'll risk the detention but I need those notes."

Lily looked at her for a moment, then turned and walked back towards the boys. Ella saw her say something to James and take something from his bag but she wasn't listening to what they were saying.

Then Lily walked back towards Ella and handed her a wadded up cloak.

"Here…James used it earlier to get into the Three Broomsticks and not all of us can fit under it to get back to Gryffindor Tower .I'd rather you take it if you're going to sneak into the library by yourself especially…in this state." Lily gestured towards Ella.

Ella took the cloak from Lily and held it up.

"James` invisibility cloak?" Ella asked.

Lily nodded. "It should help, at least you'll have a better chance of not getting caught…"

Ella had only seen the cloak once. Sirius and James had been careless one night when they were sneaking out of the tower and had not checked to make sure no one was in the common room when they put it on. At first James was very angry but Sirius managed to talk him down and convince him that Ella wouldn't say anything and that if she did, there would be a most embarrassing price to pay. That had been nearly four years ago and Ella had not seen the cloak since. Lily must have been really worried about her getting caught to entrust it to her now.

"Thanks Lily. If I'm not back in the morning, send a search party."

"Ha ha." Lily said sarcastically, "Just be careful and try not to get caught…and here I'll take your bag back to your room."

Ella murmured her thanks as she threw the cloak over herself.

She walked out of the room with the small group of Gryffindors until they came to the staircase at which point, they went up and she went down.

Ella's mind was still foggy but she could walk fine and the sluggishness that usually comes with drinking had left her. Other than her head feeling a little heavier than usual she felt that she could probably fool Filch into thinking nothing was wrong if she was caught…as long as he didn't speak to her for very long.

Taking her time down the corridors, Ella slowly but surely made her way towards the library.

XXXXXXXX

Severus glanced up at the clock in the wall, it was nearly 2:15 on a Saturday morning. The library had closed over two hours ago but like all the other Friday nights he spent in here, he had simply stayed hidden in the stacks away from Madame Pince's view and had simply waited for the lights to flicker out and for everyone else to leave so that he could take his favorite spot in the plush arm chair before the fire place and not be disturbed.

Looking at the clock one more time, Severus rubbed his tired eyes and promised himself he would only stay for another thirty minutes before turning in.

One time he had fallen asleep in his fifth year and had been woken up by a very frustrated Madame Pince the next morning. Not wanting to repeat the incident a second time, he had started to be more careful about where he fell asleep from there on out.

Resting his head against the back of the chair he stretched his back and arms a little after being in the same position for hours. Severus began to do the same service for his legs, careful not to push his books off the coffee table, which were now resting next to his tie and robe he had discarded earlier.

Tonight he was especially thankful for his sanctuary. Ever since the incident that had occurred in the corridor that afternoon Lucius had gone on a rampage of tearing up the Slytherin common room and tormenting 3rd years. Then he had caught sight of Zabini pulling Lucius aside and knew it was time to take his leave. God knows what Lucius would do after hearing his spot on the team was being challenged on top of everything else. So there he was.

Severus` thoughts drifted back a few hours as he recalled Lucius demeaning Ella in front of his housemates. He recalled the insults shared between the two. It had been a bad situation when he came upon it but it escalated even quicker due to Lucius` pride. Ella had stood there alone against six Slytherin's and had watched as Lucius put her down in front of all of them but she wouldn't back down and let him walk all over her. Severus knew that's what drove Lucius over the edge because even by herself she still managed to embarrass him in front of his peers.

It was as Ella was making that last remark that he had caught sight of the small group of Gryffindors rounding the corner. Then as Lucius pushed Ella to the ground, their wands, seemed to fly out of their pockets. And when Remus` spell had collided with Lucius` arm it was only then that Severus let out the breath he had not realized he had been holding.

As he let his muscles relax once again, he settled back into his chair and was about to reach for another book when he heard a loud noise.

Severus` head shot up, suddenly very alert, he instinctively grabbed his wand off the table and listened intently for anything else. He continued to hear nothing but had already started to make his way around the dark library, which at this time of night had only the fire and a few small lanterns to give any sort of light.

Afer a moment he heard more noise, however it was much quieter. Listening carefully the whole time, Severus found himself in the potions section of the library. As he stepped further into the potions section he noticed several books laying on the floor, obviously having fallen there.

"Lumos."

Severus` wand cast a small glow over the dimly lit floor. Walking cautiously he soon came upon a disembodied hand fumbling in mid air until it came to a small table where it promptly picked up a small stack of parchment.

Severus` eyes widened slightly.

"Who's there?!" Severus` voice boomed.

The hand stopped in mid air and quickly it began to move, the parchment still in hand. Severus heard the sound of footsteps running and quickly followed. Soon though, the hand disappeared along with the parchment.

Severus listened for footsteps as they loudly made contact with the floor. Relying on his hearing now, he heard the footsteps getting closer then another loud crash was heard. He hid in the shadows of the bookshelves until he heard the footsteps right in front of him, then without a moments hesitation, he pounced.

He felt his form come in contact with something. Rolling around on the floor for a second, he finally managed to take control and pin the person to the floor. Severus could see the hand holding the parchment exposed once again and a muffled "oof."

Severus rolled his eyes as he pulled back what he now realized was an invisibility cloak.

The look of surprise that graced his features as he now identified his captive was photo worthy.

"Brady?!"

"Was that really necessary?!" Ella shouted.

Severus just stayed there still surprised.

"Get off of me!"

Severus quickly snapped back to his senses and did as he was told.

He stood and waited for Ella to stand as well but noticed she was having a very hard time doing even that.

Without thinking he did something he never did, he leaned down and helped her up. She however began batting away his hands.

"Get your hands off of me!" Ella shouted.

That was when Severus smelled the remnants of firewhiskey.

"Are you drunk?" Severus asked slightly incredulous.

As if answering his question Ella stumbled around and managed to finally stand up, however she seemed unable to stand completely still.

"That…that is none of your business!" she shouted at him. "What are you doing here anyway?"

Well, however mobile impaired she is her mouth seems to be working just fine.

"I could ask you the same question. What, did the Gryffindors decide to play, 'Let`s get pissed and wander the castle?'

Ella gave him a very dirty look and replied, "I forgot the notes you gave me. And since your such a heartless bastard who would probably not give me another copy, I had to come and get them." Ella was now groping the bookshelf for support.

"And as for the drunk part?"

Ella smirked, " It's a Friday night, I had a few drinks with some friends…oh, wait I forgot the concept of friends is something completely unknown to you."

She might as well as have slapped him across the face, because the look that passed over his features illustrated the same effect, whether it had been physical or verbal she pretty much had done just that.

Ella seemed a little surprised at her own words, even in her condition. But she didn't take them back and she made no sign of remorse over them.

After a moment of silence Severus spoke in a voice that had no tone with a face that wore no expression. He was blank but his words, despite how emotionless, cut deep.

"You know Brady…you really are a bitch."

Then he turned and began to walk away but she wasn't done.

"Me? You're calling me names after what happened today?!"

Severus still didn't turn as he slowly kept walking.

"You're the one who just stood there while Malfoy humiliated me! Talked me down to nothing but a filthy whore! You stood there when he almost…!"

"I am not going to have this conversation with you. You're drunk." Severus cut her off.

Ella's tirade didn't end though. She managed to close the distance between them with no trouble at all, anger obviously having sobered her a little more. Severus didn't move as she got within centimeters of him. Despite the height he had on her she raised her head defiantly towards him.

"You stood there like the rest of them. You didn't even raise a finger to help me, not even when he almost hit me!"

Severus just stared at her.

"I'm just another 'stupid mudblood bitch to you!'" Ella's fists began to pound on Severus' chest as she screamed at him.

"Just another stupid little mudblood who doesn't deserve a place in this world. Just like the other Slytherin's think. Don't you?!

Her fists kept pounding into his chest and he still hadn't budged.

"Don't you?!" She screamed, tears pouring out of her eyes.

As her left fist came down once again on his chest, Severus finally grabbed her by her wrists, instantly stopping her and shoved her against one of the bookcases. Their noses nearly touching.

Severus stared into her eyes once again, there was rage beyond any he had ever seen and something else...fear?

He opened his mouth and began to speak. His voice barely a whisper yet the usual silky, almost mesmerizing tone was now rough as sand paper.

"Listen to me."

Severus' breathing was deep and slow as he spoke harshly.

"You told me…you yelled at me that we were to act naturally around each other. What did you expect me to do?! In front of my own house no less?"

His words brought Ella back out of her thoughts and revived her anger, which had been forgotten momentarily as she gazed upon him.

"So, what? You would take it so far as to let him beat me?"

"Your friends were coming, I saw them myself. Potter and Black practically had their wands at the ready as soon as they caught sight of you. By the time Lucius even began to think of touching you he didn't have a chance."

Ella didn't respond and as she thought Severus couldn't lean in any closer, he did.

"Now what did you expect me to do?"

Ella didn't answer his question. She tried to shove him off or even move her wrists but he held her tight.

"What did you expect me to do?" Severus asked again.

"Too much, obviously." Ella retorted.

Severus looked over her as if pained then slowly released her.

"Obviously." He stated.

Ella looked down at the floor, here eyes outlining his feet. She couldn't look in his eyes anymore it was too much, too intense for her.

But she had one more thing to say.

"What I keep asking myself though…is what would have happened if my friends hadn't come along?"

Severus remained silent.

Ella closed her eyes and lifted her head, willing herself to open her eyes, she looked at him.

"What would you have done then?"

An expression graced his features, one Ella had never seen before. Uncertainty.

It now seemed Severus was unable to look into Ella's eyes for his gaze lowered and his eyes glazed over.

After a moment of unbearable silence he finally whispered, "I don't know."

He didn't look back up and he didn't know how long they had stood there before he saw Ella's feet turn and heard her run. He heard the library and the door swish open and close. Then silence.

Once again he was alone.

End Chapter Eight.


	9. The Loneliness of Guilt

Ch.9 The Loneliness of Guilt 

"Morning Sunshine!" A voice said cheerfully as Ella's eyes started to flutter, reluctant to the little bits of light that were now flooding the room.

Letting out a small groan she sat up warily, decided that wasn't the best idea and fell back into her bed.

"Let's go Ella."

Ella let out a small groan.

"Mary, it's a Saturday and I'm still trying to recuperate from last night. Just go to breakfast without me."

Suddenly Ella felt something hard and round being pushed into her hand. Opening her eyes, she glanced at it.

"Here, Lily brewed some this morning. The boys were apparently in dire need of it. Now, hurry and get up. You know how you are…you'll sleep in until noon and then wake up in a frenzy because you have wasted half the day."

Ella forced herself to sit up once again and drank the small cup of hang over potion.

"Now, get up and take a shower you look like shit." Mary informed her. "Where were you last night by the way? Lily came back with the boys but you didn't get back until later? A rendezvous with a secret lover perhaps?"

Ella cringed at the note of excitement in Mary's voice.

_Always a hopeless romantic she'll be._

"Alright, well don't tell me then. I'll see ya down at breakfast. Now GET OUT OF BED!"

Ella sat upright as Mary shut the door behind her.

The remnants of sleep had started to leave her as the hang over potion had begun to take effect. Ella took in her surroundings, allowing her eyes to adjust to the morning light. Her gaze then fell upon the notes she had forgotten last night, lying next to James` invisibility cloak and all the events that had transpired earlier that morning bombarded her mind.

Ella sat there in bed, thankful for being the only one left in the room. Her shoulders sank back into the headboard and her hands raked through her dirty hair. She made her way over towards the girl's bathroom, knowing a long shower was in order. Despite that the hang over potion had already begun to take effect, as Ella walked towards the bathroom her arms felt heavy and she seemed to stoop as she walked.

But the events in the library seemed to have more to do with her demeanor than the firewhiskey from the night before.

As the hot water poured over her, the thoughts in her head began to play out.

"…_Oh, wait I forgot the concept of friends is something completely unknown to you."_

The words she had said to him, echoed through her head.

She had been so angry with him and too drunk to care about whatever came out of her mouth.

Ella sank to the floor of the shower, basking in the high temperature of the water. The sting of it hitting her skin, but she didn't even notice.

They had argued before, that was evident enough. At the time they were pointless arguments, more about their pride than anything else. But last night…she had said things she never dreamed of saying, things that were cold and cruel. For a second she felt ashamed, and then simply didn't know what to feel at all.

He hadn't been able to answer her question. For once Severus Snape couldn't answer a bloody question. But it wasn't just any question, it was the question she had wanted an answer to the most. That angered her.

But something also surprised her.

She had broken his façade. There he had been before her in a way she had never seen him. His eyes had been alive with a strange sort of light seeming to almost shine through them. His hair was shaggy as usual, his attire was what it had been when she had walked in on him unexpectedly the other day.

His tie and robe had been absent, the sleeves on his oxford shirt were rolled up to his elbows and the first two buttons were undone.

His voice, so full of so many emotions that seemed to meld together like a tightly coiled rope that Ella could not separate one from the other.

For over a month she had been trying to break through his barriers. Then there they had been in the middle of the library at an ungodly hour and he had been angrier then all hell, not lettering her leave. She had barely recognized him. And at that moment she was for once scared of him.

Ella almost laughed at the irony of it all.

Breathing a few deep breaths, she managed to stand up and turn the water off.

She returned to her room and glanced out the window. Murky was a good way to describe the weather. Ella embraced it though; happy that at least something matched her mood.

Without thinking she threw open the window. The cool October wind made her shiver a little as she replaced her bath towel with a pair of old jeans that had holes big enough to leave her knees exposed and a thick grey sweater. After a quick drying spell, she threw her hair into a messy bob on the top of her head, tying it off with her black ribbon.

Ella let out a deep sigh as she gave herself a once over in the mirror. Staring at her reflection, she almost wished she hadn't taken Lily's hang over potion. If anyone had asked she could have simply used that as an excuse for the somber mood that was illustrated in her manner and the miserable look in her eyes. Shaking her head a little Ella breathed deep and started towards breakfast, hoping against hope that he wouldn't notice her enter the Great Hall.

Ella descended the last step to the main floor and breathed deep once again as she walked through the doors. No one seemed to notice her presence but she didn't dare look over towards the Slytherin table as she walked towards her own table. As she got closer a few Gryffindors looked up and acknowledged her with a few `good mornings. ` Then Mary caught site of her and waved her over.

"There she is! I told you she wouldn't stay in bed all day." Mary said to Sirius and James who were sitting across from her with a very intent look on their faces.

Ella took a seat between Mary and Remus and tried to smile at everyone. She had barely taken a bite of her toast when James began to speak.

"So, have you heard?" He asked anxiously.

"Heard what?" Ella asked, her mouth full.

"About Snape?!"

Ella nearly choked on her toast.

"Excuse me?" She said coughing

"About him challenging Malfoy…for position of Seeker?"

Ella relaxed and took a sip of her pumpkin juice.

"No, I hadn't. When did this happen?" She said trying to sound surprised.

"We dunno." Sirius answered. "But the challenge is going on this afternoon. I reckon we should check it out and see if we're going to need to be aware of any new blood that happens to make it's way onto the Slytherin team."

Lily, who was on the other side of Remus, rolled here eyes.

"The way you two speak…one would think you were talking about espionage rather than quidditch."

Sirius gave Lily a very stern look, "There is very little difference between the two Lily, and you would do well to remember that."

That response garnered both Lily and Remus sending dubious glances at Sirius.

Meanwhile Ella played with her food absentmindedly as she snuck a glance over towards the Slytherin table. He wasn't there.

She hadn't known he had officially placed his challenged. It didn't really matter, she supposed. She knew he was ready and that this was inevitable, yet for some reason she felt a sense of loss and insignificance at finding out about it through James and Sirius rather than him.

XXXXXXXX

It was 10:30 in the morning and he still hadn't budged from his bed. Severus lay there on his back looking at the ceiling above him. He hadn't slept well after returning from the library during the early hours of the morning. Every time he had shut his eyes images of her pounding on his chest and crying flashed through his head. Then more images came including one of Malfoy tormenting her. Then of her in the library demanding answers for his lack of action. Those were the most prominent.

Her voice filled his mind as he heard her ask him almost desperately, "…what would have happened if my friends hadn't come along? What would you have done then?"

Then he would wake up. Over and over again this happened through out the morning until he finally resolved to simply lay there.

Everyone was at breakfast right now. He had overheard the murmurs and whispers as the rest of his dorm mates had arisen from their sleep about the challenge he had now laid before Lucius, who remained silent on the whole matter.

Today was the day that would decide whether he was good enough to get what he had worked so hard for. But at the moment, it didn't seem as important as it had the night before.

Severus finally rolled over in a bit of a huff as if giving up on sleep or any sort of rest. He threw on a pair of pants and a long sleeved shirt. As he marched out of the room he made sure his wand was tucked securely in his back pocket.

He needed to clear his head and get some practice in before tonight. As he stepped out of the castle he felt the cold wind beat against his face and it offered a sort of relief to be outside. Inhaling deeply, Severus jogged over to the broom shed and grabbed the Clean Sweep he had been riding a few weeks ago. Quickly shrinking it small enough to fit in his pocket.

If it had been a Hogsmeade weekend it would have been quite easy to sneak off to the clearing, however it was not a Hogsmeade weekend and it was also during the day. So, naturally it was quite a bit more difficult to get to the empty classroom and open the passage without any peering eyes but somehow he managed. As he made his way out of the tunnel and into the trees he felt a sudden pang of loneliness. It was strange being here without her and in the daylight the clearing seemed almost unrecognizable. But he was determined to just try for a few hours to block everything out, including her.

As he brought the broom back to it's original size he gave one last look at the path he had come through, then determinedly mounted the broom and began the same rigorous exercises Ella had put him through for over a month.

XXXXXXXX

The day had gone by without any incidents. Although the fact that Ella stayed away from everyone all day may have had something to do with that. After breakfast she had wanted nothing more than to be alone, to be able to not have to face Lily and Remus` "I told you so" expressions. She wanted to be unfound for the day. There was only one place inside Hogwarts that could truly provide her with that sort of protection.

Upon walking past it three times, the Room of Requirement revealed itself to her.

Ella had never used the room outside of her potions lessons with Severus, she now walked into it and found it in an entirely different state that that of their potions lessons. Rather than a large room with shelves of ingredients, cauldrons on boilers, and mahogany desks she found something much cozier.

The room was half the size of the one she usually found with a large fireplace and a roaring fire. There was a small window that had not been there before and Ella could see it was now raining outside. The room had a few lamps of all shapes and sizes that gave off a soft, warm, glow. There was a large, richly colored throw rug beneath her feet. There were only a few pieces of furniture, none of which matched but it all seemed to go together anyway. A large, dark purple, couch sat in front of the fireplace, a blanket having been folded and thrown over the top of it. A large ornate antique coffee table stood in front of the couch, her books along with extra parchment, quills, and ink layed neatly on top of the table, ready to be used. Two armchairs were on either end of the coffee table, facing each other. One armchair was narrow and tall and a deep maroon color. Whereas the other was short, wide and very cushy looking and had a blue color to it. Then lastly was a small end table near the fat, short arm chair that held a record player playing a slow, old, melody.

The room to Ella was perfect, it reminded her of a sort of cross between a traditional sitting room and an Italian café. Enjoying the warmth of the fire Ella made her way over towards the couch, kicked off her shoes and lay across it with a book and a fresh sheet of parchment to take notes.

For the first time in nearly two days Ella felt herself become easy in her own solitude and enjoyed the distraction of her subjects. Her mind, for the time being, was happy to forget life outside of the room.

Ella worked relentlessly for the next five hours reading and writing both notes and essays. Upon completing a Transfiguration essay Ella began to feel the lack of sleep she had from the night before finally start to catch up with her and before she knew it had fallen asleep.

"_Stupid mudblood bitch!" Ella was back in the corridor in front of Malfoy. He shoved her to the ground as a group of Slythiner's looked on but her gaze focused onto one Slytherin in particular. Severus._

_His eyes seemed to plead with hers, seemed so scared but then he closed them, turned his back and walked away._

"_Severus!" she shouted._

_Still he didn't turn._

_Malfoy raised his wand at her and shouted, "Crucio!"_

_Ella couldn't feel anything but heard her own yelps of pain as an unseen force seemed to twist and snap her body in different directions even as Malfoy walked over and gave her a swift kick._

_Then the pain seemed to be gone and Ella was left shaking on the floor as Malfoy stepped back and seemed to allow Sirius to pick her up._

_As Ella looked in the direction Severus had gone she heard Sirius` words, "He's not of us, Ella."_

_Then the scene changed as if an old film reel was playing Ella saw Severus alone reading in the Great Hall as she looked on in curiosity. Next they were walking through the tunnel as he was telling her about his potions apprenticeship. She saw them arguing in the library. Then the time where she had shown up to potions tutoring early and found him off his guard. She remembered the small smile that had appeared on his face that same lesson. The next scene they were flying in the clearing together, both neck and neck trying to grab the snitch. She saw him staring at her while she, Remus, and Lily studied out on the grounds._

_All these small memories passed through her head and just as quickly as she had seen them they seemed to vanish and she looked up to find herself on a beautiful hillside. The wind blew through the trees as she looked around and saw Severus only it didn't seem to be Severus._

_This tall boy had the same posture as Severus, and the same shoulder length, black hair, same hooked nose, fair skin, and dark eyes. His attire was as it had been in the library the night before, sleeves rolled up and his tie was gone. His hands were in his pockets as he looked at her. But he was smiling, smiling at her. He looked so different, more boyish and happier._

"_I've been waiting for you." He said cheerfully._

_He began to walk towards her, closing the small gap between them until she could feel his breath upon her face. The wind blew again as she just stood there staring up at him._

_His intense gaze never once breaking from hers._

"_You're early," He said as he brought his hand up to her face and tucked a stray hair behind her ear, the small smile never leaving his face. Then almost as if someone had hit a switch, the sunlight that had just been playing across his face was replaced with a dark shadow._

_In an instant the happiness that has graced his features were gone, and fear quickly took their place as he stared wide-eyed at Ella and began to step back from her._

_As the shadow moved so did Severus and as hard as he tried to escape it, he couldn't. She opened her mouth to scream his name but nothing came out._

_He put his hand out, trying to reach hers but as the shadow dragged him away as he got further and further. Ella ran after him trying to catch up, trying to grab his hand but it seemed he was always just out of reach._

"_Ella!" He screamed._

Ella woke with a start. Breathing hard, she sat up straight from her position on the couch. She relaxed a little as she took in her surroundings, remembering where she was. As she swung her legs back over the edge of the couch she buried her face in her hands as she let her mind come back to reality.

_It was only a dream._

Leaning back against the sofa in relief she glanced out the window and noticed the darkening sky. Narrowing here eyes a little she pushed up the sleeve of her sweater and looked at her watch.

"Shit!"

Dinner was half way over. Quickly putting on her shoes Ella was about to take all her notes and essays and just carry them out when she saw her school bag was now residing next to her books on the coffee table. Putting her school supplies inside, she ran outside the room, not stopping until she reached the Great Hall.

XXXXXXXX

If only half the student body had been aware of the challenge at breakfast, the entire student body was well aware of it now. The Great Hall was positively buzzing about the Slytherin vs. Slytherin match. As long as anyone could remember no one had challenged a position on the quidditch team in decades. As soon as Ella walked into the Great Hall she could see the Ravenclaw seeker, Leif Raymond, and Robert Crawley seeker of Hufflepuff talking in hushed tones to each other. No doubt about Snape possibly being the new Slytherin seeker.

They looked up at her and nodded in acknowledgment. Despite that they were rivals on the pitch, she, Crawley and Raymond had always had a mutual respect for each other. They appreciated each other's styles and even though they would lose to each other sometime there was a fair sense of good sportsmanship that they did not share with Malfoy.

Ella made her way over towards the Gryffindor table and plopped down next to Remus. She again refused to look over at the Slytherin table. Her avoidance of looking in that direction became very apparent to her good friend.

"Are you gonna go?" Remus questioned.

Ella looked up confused, "What?"

"…to the challenge? Are you going to go watch him?"

"Probably not. It's no interest to me." Ella said more to her plate than to Remus.

Remus put his fork down and leaned in close so no one could hear.

"Ella, I'm your friend and as your friend I have to tell you you're being irrational…"

Ella cut him off before he could finish and said in a very low dangerous tone, "Remus I'm not being irrational. I found out exactly what I wanted to last night."

Remus was confused, "Last night? You were with…" He trailed off as he realized the party had not been the only place Ella had been the previous night.

"That's why you got back so late isn't it? He was in the library." Remus stated more than questioned.

Ella refused to look at him, "I don't want to talk about it."

"Ella…" Remus said trying to push her otherwise.

"I said I don't want to talk about it!" Ella said a little loudly, causing several people at the table to look at her.

Remus looked down at his own plate and Ella instantly felt guilty.

"Remus, I'm sorry. It was just really bad on both our parts."

Remus looked at her, offering a small smile. "It's alright. If you do want to talk about it though, you know where to find me."

Ella returned the small smile and nodded.

After a few more bites of her food she saw a few people beginning to leave and gave a sly glance towards the Slytherin table where she found Severus following several other Slytherins out of the Great Hall.

A few minutes passed and then her and Remus began to follow most of the Gryffindor house out as well. But, when they reached the main entrance Ella hung back.

Remus stopped and turned.

"I'm not going to ask about what happened last night. But, bare something in mind. This means as much to you as it does to him. Whether you want to admit it or not, it does. I know you Ella and you put a lot of hard work into teaching him. I don't care if you hate his guts, how he does out there today is a huge reflection on you as well and I get the feeling he's going to do you proud."

Ella contemplated his words and looked back down towards the floor, "You better get out there Remus, it's going to start soon."

She heard Remus sigh then head out to join up with Sirius, James, and Peter.

Ella stood looking out towards the pitch where from the looks of it practically the entire school had gone to watch the match.

The sky was almost completely dark now but lights had been set up all over the pitch to accommodate the match. It was as if it was a proper quidditch match. All the houses had sat in their respective sections. There were many students standing around, Ella could spot James and Sirius among them probably looking to see what kind of brooms would be used.

Ella thought for a moment on what broom Severus would fly, he didn't have one of his own yet. But he probably got his pick of the school brooms they had and she knew Hogwarts had purchased a few new Clean Sweeps at the start of the year.

_Clean Sweeps are good brooms, they're easy to navigate and he should pick up the feel of them fairly quickly._

Ella mentally slapped herself. She didn't care about what bloody broom he used. As far as she was concerned he could fly her mothers kitchen broom.

"Not out watching the challenge Ms. Brady?" a voice asked.

Ella was brought out by her reverie and looked up to see no other than the Headmaster standing next to her.

"Oh…hello Professor. No, I guess not."

"I'm surprised a seeker like yourself is not out 'watching the competition' so to speak?"

Ella smirked. "I believe Sirius and James are doing quite a bit of that as we speak."

Dumbledore chuckled. "Ah, I always sympathize with the Slytherin's."

Ella looked up at the old wizard incredulously. "Sir?"

But Dumbledore seemed to take no notice of her tone as he gazed out onto the pitch.

"They have always been a very misunderstood house. I know being a Gryffindor how you feel, especially with the ongoing house rivalry but Slytherin has always been looked upon as cold, unforgiving, and at times inhuman. If you're not one of them, you're against them. Am I correct?"

Ella felt very uncomfortable talking about her perceptions of Slytherin with her Headmaster but answered.

"Yes, sir. That is the perception. But I don't understand why you sympathize with them when they seem to uphold this image themselves."

Dumbledore had that damn twinkle in his eye as he responded.

"Ms. Brady sometimes when we are told constantly how different we are from everyone else, we begin to believe it ourselves. Slytherin has always held very traditional views in a world that is ever changing and they have been put out by the rest of the houses for keeping to these traditions, both good and bad and they have defined themselves by this…by these differences. So much so that we seem to completely forget our similarities to one another. It is those similarities which hold us together."

Ella was beginning to get the impression that Dumbledore was not just talking about Slytherin house anymore.

Dumbledore now glanced back up towards the pitch.

"You of all people, Ms. Brady, should know that not everything is what it seems. As a muggle born witch, there are many who doubted your abilities when you came to Hogwarts because of your heritage. This was due to a preconceived notion that muggle born wizards and witches could not be as…capable as pureblooded ones. Now, six years later you have established yourself as a very talented witch who even despite her shortcomings in potions has managed to rank as one of Hogwarts top students. Not to mention a very good seeker."

Dumbledore now turned his gaze back towards her.

"Sometimes we have to look passed our own preconceived notions. In Slytherin's case we may find that they are not as cold and as inhuman as we think."

Ella contemplated the Headmasters words as she gazed outside at the pitch, seeing that the match had just started.

When she looked back towards Dumbledore, he was gone.

Turning her attention back to the match, Ella stepped out of the castle and began to walk towards the pitch.

XXXXXXXX

Severus was nervous beyond belief. He never felt so alone as he did now. It was him against the school. Or so it felt like.

The truth was most of the house was relatively indifferent to who won the match. As Severus had proven a few weeks before, he was a very capable flyer and could probably only improve the Slytherin quidditch teams chances. So, there was no fear that he could be worse than Malfoy, who was probably the least talented seeker of all the houses quidditch teams.

Even with these facts in mind, Severus still felt very alone. He had known that the match would capture some attention but he had never intended for this to be a school wide event. Everyone was there including the entire staff. Well, almost everyone.

In spite of himself he couldn't help scanning the crowds to see if he could catch the glimpse of a familiar black ribbon or the mischevious smile he had come to know so well. He looked over his shoulder towards the Gryffindor section of the pitch and found the dreaded Potter and Sirius staring holes through him and Lupin and Evans next to them talking quietly to themselves…but no Ella.

_What were you expecting you dolt? For her to show up and give you some last minute advice? Especially after last night? You must be off your rocker._

All day he had managed to keep his thoughts at bay on the subject of Ella and the night before…well most thoughts at least. All day he had flown and practiced and gone through his usual routines, even flying after the snitch. At moments through out the the day though he imagined her chasing the snitch with him and barking orders as he made his twists and turns through the trees of the clearing. Now here he was at the last few moments before the game, probably the worse possible time, and he was thinking about her again.

 Severus breathed deeply and turned, beginning to survey the pitch and what he needed to be prepared for. Due to the fact that a challenge like this had not been made in decades there had been a question as to how to go about it. At last Zabini had come up with a plan. The match would be a scrimmage game of sorts. Slytherins vs. Slytherins. Zabini had split up the existing Slytherin quidditch team among two different teams then to fill the open spaces he recruited several alternates they had on stand by or even asked several housemates who were very good at quidditch but had no interest in joining the team, to volunteer. Severus would be playing seeker for the Green team while Lucius would be playing seeker for the Silver team. Whoever caught the snitch first would win the position on the Slytherin quidditch team.

However, to ensure fairness to the game Zabini had opted it would be best to not play in the game and would be refereeing the match.

Severus looked down at his broom, he had managed to grab once again another new Clean Sweep from the school's broom shed. He was making sure his wand was secure in his back pocket when he felt a hard shove and nearly fell to the ground. Taking his wand out, he looked up into the cold grey eyes of Lucius.

"Better watch yourself today Snape. It won't be pretty up there."

As soon as Zabini had informed Lucius of the challenge all civility and friendship Lucius had shown him in the before, disappeared. Severus had expected this. If there was one thing he had learned about Lucius and the rest of the Malfoy clan, especially from Ella, it was that you didn't challenge them.

Severus still held his wand out at Malfoy and leveled his eyes with his, "I'm counting on it."

Lucius was the first to turn, leaving a staring Severus at his departing form as he made his way over towards his teams end of the field. Within a few moments both Keepers of their respective teams were called towards the center of the pitch and the players mounted their brooms and rose into the air, awaiting the release of the various flying balls about to be released.

Zabini threw the quaffle and within seconds the snitch and bludgers were released as well.

Severus had barely seen the gold of the snitch flash before his eyes as it made it's escape from the sturdy wooden chest, before he and Lucius both lost sight of it.

The quaffle was being passed between players at the moment and just as the Silver team was about to score, the Green team intercepted the quaffle.

Severus wasn't paying attention though, he and Lucius were both keeping one eye out for the snitch and one eye on each other. All the while attempting to dodge bludgers.

That was a difficulty Severus had not yet encountered. Although he and Ella had attempted many times to obtain bludgers to practice with, neither had ever succeeded so this put Severus at bit of a disadvantage.

After the first hour and still no sign of the snitch he was beginning to grow very anxious. Silver team was in the lead having scored the most points with the quaffle and Green team was in dire need of more points.

Severus had resolved to fly above most of the game, so as to keep out of the way of other players and to give the beaters time to deflect the bludgers before they collided with him.

Severus flew a little more overhead, now having a full view of the pitch below him. Just as he was about to rise a little higher out of the corner of his eyes he saw something.

There, flying right over the Silver teams's goal posts was the golden snitch. Severus sneaked a glance at Lucius and saw he was still oblivious as to the position of the snitch but he was much closer to it than Severus at the moment. Quickly going through the possibilities in his head, Severus opted for subtlety. If he flew in a beeline towards the snitch Lucius would notice and merely need to turn to grab it.

So, making as if to circle the pitch, Severus began to get closer towards the area. He was sure to not directly look at the snitch but kept it within the corner of his eye the whole time.

Then right as he was coming above it one of Lucius` teammates shouted, "Oy! The snitch! Malfoy get it, Snape's closing in!"

Almost as if sensing it had been seen the snitch flew away right as Lucius made the grab for it, zooming over the crowd and rounding the pitch once more. It was zig zagging so much that it was difficult to follow it but the two seekers kept sight of it and managed to stay on it's path.

But Lucius and Severus were so focused on the snitch itself that neither noticed when it seemed to fall into stride next to a bludger.

The risk in the game of getting killed soon became much higher in probability. But neither of the two Slytherin's were going to back off that easily. The two boys were neck and neck as they cautiously made their way closer and closer towards the bludger, trying to grab the snitch.

As Severus` fingers were about to come in contact with the snitch he felt a hard shove. Lucius was trying to push him off his broom.

Another hard shove came and this time Severus nearly did fall off his broom.

Severus heard the crowd below gasp as his broom shook back and forth from the impact, but he would not back down. Not now.

Lucius was coming in on the snitch, with Severus trailing behind him, when the bludger changed course and headed straight for him.

The bludger was coming in fast and there was no time to really react, Lucius simply sat there in mid air looking every bit like a deer in headlights. The bludger made it's impact with the bare end of Lucius` broom causing it to tailspin rapidly.

There was some cheers from the crowd below, but they quickly died down as Malfoy steadied his broom and managed to gain control. Within a few moments he was tailing Severus once again and his eye back on the snitch, which was now ascending high above the pitch.

Lucius leaned as close as ever to his broom and sped up to Severus as they both soared higher after the snitch.

The wind was beating so rapidly Severus` face was searing with pain from being so wind whipped. Every part of him was freezing from the fall night air and the cold wind he was currently flying through. But his determination was as great as ever.

The snitch now flew level rather than continue to rise. Severus snuck a glance down and noticed how all the other players looked like small ants. He had never flown this high before and he had to admit it was a little scary.

"You might as well give up now Snape, the game is as good as mine. I have been Seeker for two years now not to mention…I have the faster broom!" Lucius called over to Snape.

"Really? That faster broom doesn't seem to have helped you much in the past two years, has it?" Severus replied silkily.

The snitch was about ten feet away from them when it happened.

It dove so fast that it appeared to simply be falling.

But as if by reflex, Severus descended as well, while Lucius hesitated for a split second.

Severus gripped his broom tightly and gritted his teeth through the excruciating pain of the biting wind against his face. The snitch was not slowing down or leveling off.

He felt Lucius begin to gain on him, having the faster broom was finally coming in handy. The two were now neck and neck again as they dove towards the ground at break neck speed. Lucius glanced over at Severus and Severus returned the look.

This was it. If the snitch didn't level off soon both would have to face crashing head on into the ground. That was the only way they were going to get it.

The snitch was not leveling off and almost upon realization of what was happening everyone fell silent. The onlookers looked at the scene in awe and the other team members seemed to have forgotten their own parts in the game as all eyes fell upon the two Slytherin's performing an incredibly dangerous stunt while in pursuit of the snitch.

Severus had done these exercises so many times with Ella and he had always complained about going into a high dive to just centimeters off the ground. But now he was secretly grateful. He needed to concentrate and no matter what, trust himself and balance all of his body, especially his legs on his broom to keep from making impact with the ground.

The earth was coming up to meet the two seekers, they were merely a few feet away now.

Severus wouldn't be frightened though, he had done this so many times before and he could do it again. The ground was getting closer and closer and it seemed everyone was holding their breath.

The snitch was practically on the ground at this point and Lucius and Severus had not slown their pace in the slightest.

As Severus lerched forward on his broom to give himself just a little bit more speed, for the last few inches to the ground, Lucius pulled up.

Severus barely noticed this, his eyes never leaving the snitch. He was going get himself killed if he didn't do this just right.

The snitch was continuing it's descent but Severus saw it begin to level and just at the right moment swung all his weight towards the bottom of the broom causing him to level into a straight line, centimeters off the ground.

There was a sigh of relief from the onlookers…especially the staff.

The snitch was making a beeline in front of him still only centimeters off the ground. Severus tucked his knees back and made his body as flat as the broom supporting him. Using all the speed he had just earned from his sharp dive, Severus threw the broom forward, closing the last few feet between him and the snitch.

His fingers scraped the hard gold and soon the small golden snitch lay beating it's wings into Severus` palm.

At first there was no explosive applause or whooping or screams of victory from the crowd. None of these people were here to root for him. But the excruciating silence that had ensued while he made his pursuit towards the snitch was broken as slowly a round of applause made it's way through out the entire stadium, causing many to even stand in ovation.

Severus was still just a Slytherin and was still unliked by most of the school but the amazing feat he had just performed in beating Lucius could only be looked upon with respect and admiration.

He had proven himself.

Severus threw his broom back upwards and ascended once again into the air, doing a victory lap around the pitch as his team erupted in cheers. Then Zabini's amplified voice filled the stadium, at last saying the words he had longed to hear for so long.

"Green team has won! Severus Snape is Slytherin's new seeker!"

Severus Snape, the school outcast, the Greasy Git, the bookworm, the creepy Slytherin, had just won the position of Seeker on the Slytherin quidditch team.

Severus allowed himself a smile as he made another victory lap around the pitch, soaking in his victory that only a month ago had seemed impossible.

He looked down towards the Gryffindor section of the stadium wishing he hadn't noticed her lack of presence.

Breathing deep, he made his way back towards the ground where he found someone who was not so happy with his victory.

Lucius stood in front of Zabini with a look that could only be described as livid.

"Zabini this whole thing should never have even taken place! My father has donated so much to this team and I have been apart of it for two years! This cannot happen!"

The Captain of the Slytherin quidditch team remained calm and stared down Lucius as he spoke.

"I appreciate all that your father has done for the team Lucius but it's a school wide rule. Snape was in his rights to challenge and now he's been victorious. I'm sorry."

Severus stood only a mere five feet behind Lucius, not knowing what to say to the boy who only a few days ago had been a civil acquaintance.

Almost as if sensing his presence, Lucius turned and set his sights upon him.

"And since when do you fly so well Snape? Last year when you tried out you couldn't catch the snitch if your life depended on it!"

Lucius was a mere few inches away from his face but Severus didn't back away. He merely replied, "You know what they say Lucius, `practice makes perfect."

Lucius let out what could only be described as a growl as he shoved Severus back a few steps. But Zabini was already on him.

Grabbing Lucius by the arm Zabini said sternly, "I think it's better you leave now Malfoy."

Lucius roughly shrugged his arm out of Zabini's grasp as he and Snape glared at each other. Whatever they were before, friends, civil acquaintances. They no longer would be.

Lucius then turned and proceeded to leave the pitch.

Severus breathed in more cool air and turned around to survey the pitch once more, still not believing he had won.

He began to turn and head back towards the gate when his eye caught the small figure leaning against the fence nearby.

The wind was blowing hard and he saw the long brown hair catch in the breeze. The arms of the figure were folded on top of the fence and the body standing straight, looking almost like a statue.

Ella didn't make any motion to leave and they simply stood there for a long moment staring down at one another.

After a few seconds, Ella gave him a curt nod, looked at him then turned and walked back towards the castle.

Staring at her retreating form, Severus stood still. His recent victory for the moment forgotten, Severus allowed himself to be aware of a fact that up until that moment had not seemed so important but soon seemed as gratifying as his win itself.

She had come.

**For this last scene between Ella and Severus Turin Brakes` "Rain City" kept playing in my head. This chapter was originally set to be much longer but like most of my chapters, I ended up cutting it in half just because it was already so loaded and this seemed like a good stopping point. So, please keep a look out for the next chapter, there will be a big turning point. Thank you again for all the wonderful reviews you have no idea how much I appreciate it and how happy I am to hear that people are enjoying the story. Please keep sending me your feedback, both good and bad. My beta has been very sick these last few days so this chapter may have a few more mistakes than usual, for that I apologize. Thank you!**


	10. Changes

**Hello everyone, I'm sorry I have not updated in so long. Life kind of got in the way of writing for a little bit. I went to live in England for awhile and now I just graduated from university. So, please forgive my absence. Without further ado, let's get on with the story.**

Ch. 10 Changes

It had been two days since the Slytherin scrimmage match and yet the school was still buzzing about it. Snape had done the unthinkable. Not only was he was a school pariah who'd climbed the social latter by winning the spot of seeker, but he'd also managed to knock a pure-blooded Slytherin down a few notches in the process. Now the student body wondered what would come next.

"Do you reckon Gryffindor is going to have to up the ante now for the match with Slytherin?"

"Happy to see that his Malfoyness has been dethroned, but now we have to deal with Snape!"

"I don't care how weird Snape is, thank God someone kicked that wanker, Malfoy, to the curb."

"You know…Snape isn't all that bad looking once you get past the hair."

Severus walked into the Great Hall and was met by jovial greetings from a few of his housemates, something he had slowly become accustomed to in the past few days.

He caught Zabini's eye; the boy gave him a toothy smile. After responding with an awkward nod, Severus picked up a fork and dug into his French toast before turning to his book to catch up on reading from the night before, completely oblivious to the conversations going on around him.

After a few moments, he glanced up and scanned the Gryffindor table.

_Another meal and she still isn't here. She's going to starve pretty soon if she is that adamant about avoiding me._

That wasn't necessarily true. Severus wasn't sure if Ella was actually avoiding him per se. All he really knew was that outside of class he hadn't seen her since the Quidditch match on Saturday night and he was beginning to get anxious.

They usually had potions sessions on Sunday nights and after the match Severus didn't know what to think. No matter what they thought of each other they had an agreement and she had fulfilled her half. He was determined toi fulfill his. So he went to the Room of Requirement as usual at 7:00 that Sunday evening. He usually studied while he waited for her. The room always had everything they needed set up and ready to go, so he opened his books and began to study.

Two hours later Ella still hadn't shown up.

_She came to my Quidditch match… but now she's too prideful to come get the tutoring she really needs?_

He didn't know what to think, other than perhaps "Well, that's it then". Their agreement was over. Yet for the past two days he kept having this nagging feeling in his stomach whenever he thought about her and found himself searching for her at mealtimes.

Severus took one more look at the Gryffindor table before returning to his reading, unaware of the attention he was creating among a specific group of Gryffindors.

"He's looking over again!" exclaimed James.

"Well, maybe it's because you lot won't stop staring at him!" said Lily as she gave Sirius, James and Peter all accusing glares.

For the past few days, Snape, whether he realized it or not, had captured the surprised curiosity of most of Hogwarts Quidditch community. Despite the fact that the match had ended two days ago, there were still whispers over Snape's performance and proven capability at Quidditch. Many like Sirius and James were beyond confused as to how the hated Slytherin, who had only two months prior been denied a position on the Slytherin Quidditch team, was now the star of it.

"Maybe he used some sort of potion you know how good he is at that stuff!" Sirius suggested.

"Or maybe he charmed the broom…." James said excitedly.

"Or maybe…he actually has been practicing and was able to win the match on his own." Lily said once again trying to stop the annoying theories.

"Hey, where's Ella? She hasn't been around at meals much," Sirius asked, interrupting Lily's thoughts.

Lily blinked and looked over at Sirius.

"We have that big potions exam coming up. She's been spending every waking moment in the library studying. I get the impression we won't be seeing much of her for at least a few days." Lily frowned, "Speaking of which, shouldn't you be studying for the same exam?"

Sirius leaned back on the bench, folding his hands behind his head and letting what could only be described as a truly self-assured expression dawn his face.

"Who needs to study when you've got a face like this?"

James smirked as he bit into another slice of toast, "Yeah, didn't you have that same school of thought last time we had a test? You know, where you tried to 'woo' McGonagall?"

"She'll come around, she just didn't know what she was missing." Sirius said as he made a gesture of blowing on his fist.

"So, what are you going to do if Slughorn realizes her loss is his gain?" James remarked.

Sirius choked on his pumpkin juicesending everyone into a fit of laughter.

XXXXXXXXXX

Ella awoke to a house elf gently shaking her.

"Miss! Miss! You must wake up, breakfast is nearly over and morning classes start soon!"

Ella sat up and rubbed her eyes as she looked around. She had bounced between the library and the Room of Requirement all weekend. After the library shut down last night she came here to continue studying. She had Flooed Beabea Sunday morning after missing lunch and requested that the elf bring a tray up from the dining hall. Since then Beabea had periodically been bringing in food and checking in on Ella.

The house elf pressed a hot cup of tea into her hand and set a plate of eggs and bacon before her.

"Thanks Beabea," Ella said gratefully.

Ella let her memories rise to the surface as she ate. She'd walked away from the match last Saturday with a new determination.

The match had been the stuff of legend, and students would be whispering of it for years to come, not only because it was the first in house match in decades, but also because it was the downfall of a Malfoy.

Severus flew brilliantly. He made all the right moves and maintained a level head up there. Even though she wouldn't admit it to herself, deep down she knew she was proud of him.

But that was where it would end, for her.

After walking away from the match she had come to a decision.

Dumbledore was right. She'd done the same thing to Severus that Malfoy did to her. She put him in a tidy little box; one Slytherin was as bad as the other, just like one mudblood was just as filthy as the other. She felt ashamed as once again her own words came back to haunt her.

"_You stood there just like the rest of them!" _ Ella cringed at the memories. _I'm just another `stupid mudblood bitch to you!'_

Dumbledore had been right, but he had also forgotten one thing. He said after everyone else tells you you're different, you start to believe it yourself. Maybe Severus believed that fantasy until it became truth. An ugly truth, but a truth no less. Maybe Severus wasn't like the rest of them after all. But as far as Ella could see he wasn't any better. His actions—pr rather, lack of action—had spoken for itself. He would stand aside and let her rot on the side of a road rather than help her all for the sake of heritage. He himself had admitted he didn't know what he would do.

So, at the end of the day Ella had every proof she needed in the matter of her relationship concerning Severus Snape. Nothing had changed. He would treat her as disdainfully as he would have before they ever entered into their bargain.

She had to let it go. Whatever feelings of friendship she may have felt towards him she needed to forget. She had fulfilled her part of her the agreement. She would not hold him to his. She would find some other way to get through her potions exam.

Ella brought her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them. It was chillier now and the thick sweater she'd dawned early in the day was not nearly as cozy as before. Still, she faced the cold and turned her thoughts back to Severus.

Eventually the betrayal that still lingered would dissipate and all feelings of friendship or friendly acquaintance she may have felt towards Severus would disappear. She would forget him.

…or at least try to.

Which was the reason Ella had gotten so little sleep since that Saturday. She spent all of her waking moments dedicated to studying and not thinking about Severus Snape. She was determined more than ever to pass this potions exam, but also to do it on her own. She didn't need him. She would do whatever it took, even if that meant downing countless anti-sleeping potions to keep her up through the night.

Ella finished her breakfast and felt a tug at her sleeve. Beabea was back with a Gryffindor uniform pressed and prepared.

_Time to start my Monday morning._

XXXXXXXXXX

Severus had just come back from the library to grab a few things from his dorm before heading off to potions. He had not seen Ella in the library, not that he had been looking for her.

He'd tried to keep out the way of many of his housemates since Saturday's match. Slytherin was a traditional house that prided pure blooded families. Unfortunately that made Malfoy a somewhat revered figure. Those who didn't suck up to him or fear him were generally bought off, and everyone else tried to stay out of his way. But Saturday's match proved to be a bit of a conundrum in the Slytherin house. People didn't know if they were supposed to be happy at Severus` win because he was a new hope to bring back the quidditch cup, or hate him for taking their "dear' leader's place on the team. So when in doubt over what to decide…Slytherin chose both. When Severus entered the room everyone was congratulatory. But as soon as Lucius came into sight they all made a big show of saying how Lucius had been robbed and how it was a disgrace to the quidditch team to have Snape take his place.

Snape made his way through the common room without anyone noticing, as they were all too wrapped up in conversations of their own. He unpacked a few books to lighten his load momentarily, only to replace them with other books from his desk. After grabbing some extra quills and parchment he was off again.

As he made his way through the common room, he didn't quite make it to the door before he was approached by a short 6th year with black hair. The boy's name was Russel Sipes.

"Snape, great game over the weekend. Sure you'll be a great help for the team."

Severus was about to nod and keep going when Sipes put his arm around him—or at least tried to what with their difference in height—and walked with him out the door.

Before Severus could say another word, Sipes looked behind them and said in a low voice, "If you need something _stronger _than your average calming draught to help handle the stress of N.E. and the pressures of the team, you just let me know eh?"

Severus shrugged off Sipes' hand and raised his eyebrow. "Thanks Sipes, but I think I'll manage."

Sipes laughed a little, "Alright mate, just putting it out there. But in case you change your mind there isn't anything I can't get you. You may be great at potions, but certain _ingredients_ aren't exactly _available_ to everyone."

Snape gave him a pointed look, now getting annoyed "Like I said, I'm not in the market for a golden ticket to the bloody pink elephant rodeo. So bugger off."

As soon as Sipes turned back to the common room, Severus looked at his watch and cursed. After throwing his satchel over his shoulder he made a dash for the dungeons.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Mr. Snape, so good of you to join us." Severus was panting from all the running he had just embarked on to get here, only to discover he was five minutes too late. He half expected to have points deducted, but Slughorn seemed rather preoccupied with what he'd been talking about before Snape's entrance. As Snape made his way to his work station he looked over towards Ella, who was staring down at a blank sheet of paper on her desk. She didn't even look up when he came in.

_Fine, if that's the way it is then that's that. We made a deal, she fulfilled her end and I attempted to fulfill mine. The fact that she didn't show up for potions tutoring is her decision. Fine. Great. Whatever._

Even as Snape recited this to himself he couldn't help feeling a strange sensation in his gut. It was as if his stomach had turned and twisted into various knots that would not unwind. Just as he was beginning to contemplate why he was feeling this way something in Slughorn's speech made him stop.

"All right class. Now I know that the test is coming up at the end of next week, but I feel it is important for you to evaluate where you are right now, so that you know what you need to work on for the upcoming test. So, I have decided we are going to have a pop quiz. Please get out a fresh sheet of parchment and quill to record the steps you have taken in creating the potion and your justification for the ingredients you use. No talking. You will have one hour to complete this potion, then you will have the rest of the period to read chapter five in your textbooks. Due to the fact that this particular potion takes two days to simmer before drinking I will grade you by the color and texture of your potion as well as the steps you outlined in your notes."

With a flick of his wand, the blank chalkboard behind Slughorn suddenly illuminated the name of the potion, the Polyjuice Potion, written out in Slughorn's loopy script.

Severus glanced over at Ella again and this time he saw a look of undeniable concern on her face as she read the name of the potion. Snape knew what that meant.

_We haven't gone over this potion in our sessions together. In fact if she'd shown up to tutoring the other night like she was supposed to we would have reviewed this. _

His stomach gave another flop as he saw her anxiously try to write down what ingredients she might need, only to scratch them out.

_No, this is her fault. She should have swallowed her pride and gotten over her anger with me and shown up to the lesson. She needed my help. Her pride shouldn't have mattered!_

Only after he'd watched her finally get up to grab several ingredients from the store room did he realize he needed to get started. He knew how to do this potion and knew exactly which ingredients to get. He got up to follow her into the storeroom, hoping to catch her eye. She wouldn't even look at him. Snape opened his mouth to say something sarcastic but saw Slughorn watching them like a hawk, making sure no one was giving away answers.

Finally putting himself in the mindset of completing the task at hand, Severus gave up on any thoughts of Ella and returned to his work station where he immersed himself in completing the potion.

_An hour later…_

Severus had just finished writing his justification for why one should finely shred the boomslang skin for the potion, when Slughorn announced that their time was up and that they should hand in their notes to him immediately. Snape bottled his potion and handed it to Slughorn along with his notes. As he headed back toward his desk he saw Ella frowning at her own cauldron. He stopped himself from looking at the potion to see how it had turned out.

_You don't need to look at the potion, because you don't care if it turned out great or terrible. _

Once again stern in his thinking, Severus lost himself in a text he had collected from his room earlier, having already completed chapter five in their texts.

Time seemed to go by a lot slower today, which was unusual for him because generally when he read, time flew by. Severus had convinced himself it was because he was hungry, which, he had decided, was also why his stomach was acting up.

Slughorn finished grading five minutes before the class ended and emerged from his office with a stack of parchment ready to be passed back to his students.

"Here you are everyone, please keep up your studying. This quiz is a good indicator for what the exam will be like and I'll see you all on Thursday."

Severus looked down at the red Outstanding written on his parchment, then tucked it away in his satchel. He began to file out with the rest of the students when he heard Remus Lupin say "It's just a quiz… you'll be better for the exam."

Severus looked up. Remus was talking to Ella, and though Snape couldn't see her face he saw her silently crumble up the quiz and throw it in the waste bin before walking quickly away.

He watched her go for a minute, and then looked at the trash.

_Don't! You don't care how she did. It's her own fault no matter what she got, which apparently wasn't good._

But despite the nagging in his head, Severus found his feet walking towards the waste bin. He grabbed the crumpled parchment and unraveled it.

There, in the same red ink, was a large P for poor. Ella had failed the quiz.

Severus now knew he wasn't hungry. The twists and knots in his stomach were so strong now he felt almost nauseous. Despite how much he told himself it wasn't his fault and how much he told himself he didn't care, he knew the word for what he was feeling: guilt.

XXXXXXXXXX

Ella had practically run off after potions that morning, and she didn't attend her other classes. She felt so hopeless since the quiz. When she walked into potions she was barely prepared to listen and take notes. All she wanted to do was sleep. Then of all things Slughorn announced a pop quiz. She'd panicked. She didn't know enough about how to prepare the Polyjuice Potion. All she knew was what it did and a few key ingredients. By the time she'd handed in her notes to Slughorn she knew she didn't do well, but she was at least hoping for an "acceptable", just a passing grade.

When she received her notes back at the end of the period it felt as if all the studying she had done over the weekend had been for nothing. All she wanted was to get through this course and prove that she could do it without Snape's help. The worst bit was he had been there to watch her fail.

_Maybe he didn't see the potion or the mark, _Ella thought.

It still didn't matter. As a muggleborn she would have it hard enough once she left Hogwarts. Outside the school, everything was about bloodlines and family names. She would literally be fighting the system and she needed every N.E.W.T she could get to have a decent career in the wizarding world.

Ella shook her head.

_There's no point in feeling sorry for myself. Just forget about it, and move on. There'w work to be done._

She rubbed her eyes and began to organize her stack of papers to begin another round of studying once more.

There seemed to be millions of papers on her desk. Every note she had taken, or that Snape had given her, every graded homework assignment, and quiz in potions was before her. She rifled through the pages with haste and as she jotted down notes on every equation, side effect, proper cutting method; the large crimson grades seemed to wiz passed her eyes, mocking her.

There they were, "Acceptable, Acceptable, Barely Acceptable, Troll, Poor, Poor, Poor, Acceptable, Acceptable"

She could only ever barely make it through or fail utterly when it came to this subject.

She sighed as she came to another page marked "poor," scribbled some useful notes from it then moved onto another "acceptable." She ran her hands through her hair, gazing down at the graded assignments once more, the red grades blazing at her as if on fire.

She took a deep breath and stood up, then paced the room a little. As she leaned against her desk she looked up and into the mirror. The bags below her eyes were so prevalent she looked as if she were ill. Her blood shot eyes from lack of sleep and unkempt hair reminded her of how drastically she had paid over the last few days —the last few weeks even — for this subject. With another glance at the table filled with less than satisfactory assignments and tests she realized the sacrifice was moot. She couldn't do better. It was pointless. The exam was in less than two weeks and she still had so much to get through before that. On top of it she still had to attend to her Quidditch responsibilities and the rest of her homework.

How was she ever going to do it all?

There was no way…unless.

_No, I can't do that._

_But I need to get through this exam. It will be just this once._

_If I get caught… I could be expelled._

_But if I don't do it, I might not pass._

Ella paced around her room for a few minutes. Finally she went to her desk and grabbed a piece of parchment. After penning a quick note, she went up to the Owlery and sent it off.

XXXXXXXXXX

It was a clear night. The stars were out and the there was no wind. It would have been a perfect night for flying, had it not been so cold.

Russel Sipes had barely managed to avoid Filch as he snuck out of the Slytherin's common room. Curfew ended an hour ago and Sipes was not keen on getting caught. He made it out the main doors, turned the corner, and walked until he came to the southern abbey. He leaned against the wall, his eyes searching the area. That was when he saw it, a lit wand circling in front of its possessor three times.

Sipes moved quickly to the wand, its owner hidden by shadows.

"Evening," he said casually.

"Sipes," the figure acknowledged.

"I must admit I was intrigued to hear from you, of all people," said Sipes.

The figure scoffed and said, "I thought the only thing that mattered to you was if I had enough galleons to pay you with."

Sipes grinned. "Oh I assure you, I am a business man to the core. The money is all that really matters. So, what can I do for you?"

The figure put their wand away and removed their hood as they stepped into the moonlight.

Ella tried to keep her voice steady as she whispered, "I've tried all the usual draughts and potions, Sipes. I need something… _stronger_."

End Chapter Ten

* * *


	11. Le Sagesse

Ch. 11 Le Sagesse

"I'm sorry Harry, I think that's all I can take right now," Remus Lupin murmured as he kept his gaze fixed on the landsape outside the office window.

Harry studied the man before him. Lupin had always looked haggard due to the physical toll his lyncanthropy took on him, but now Remus looked almost seventy, instead of thirty-seven. Harry wanted to urge the man to continue the story, but when Remus finally turned his head back from the window, Harry simply couldn't bring himself to ask. Remus` eyes were filled with so much hurt. This was old pain in an old wound that would never be able to heal. Yet, it was a familiar gaze for Harry. It was a look he'd seen in many of the professors at Hogwarts when speaking of the events that had taken place nearly two decades ago. He'd seen the look in Sirius` eyes whenever his godfather had spoken of Lily or James. Once or twice Harry, had even seen the look in Dumbledore's eyes in the most fleeting of moments and only at the most dire of times. This was what loss looked like.

Loss. That truly was the only word for it. An emptiness where there had once been life; a bright future replaced by a cold memory that caused so much pain it was practically crippling.

As Harry finally managed to tear his eyes away from Lupin's tormented gaze, , he wondered if he would too come to wear that look. He had already lost so much, and he knew that he would lose more before this was all over.

"Should I come back tomorrow?" Harry asked.

Remus looked up, almost in surprise, then he nodded, stood and escorted Harry to the door. He seemed to be ready to walk Harry back to Gryffindor Tower when Harry stopped him.

"Remus, I'll be fine. You should get some rest."

Once again Remus simply nodded before murmuring good night to Harry and quietly shutting the office door.

Harry walked the halls of Hogwarts with many things bouncing in his head. All of what Remus had told him seemed to color the past and fill in holes that he had never even realized existed until he learned of Ella Brady. What's more was how the knowledge of this extraordinary woman made Snape so much more human to Harry. The idea of Snape helping and working alongside a Gryffindor was just absurd; yet Snape had done all that. And, Harry guessed, still more that he did not yet know.

Harry shook his head a bit then ran his hands through his messy hair. It became clear that this would be a restless night and Harry did not feel he could go back to Gryffindor Tower to just wait for sleep that would not come.

Knowing everything he did at this point, he felt that something needed to be done.

Soon he found himself changing paths and heading toward the Headmistress's office.

Five minutes later he stood in front of the familiar gargoyle statue.

"Chocolate Frogs," Harry said clearly.

Despite McGonagall now presiding as Headmistress of Hogwarts, she couldn't bring herself to stray away from Dumbledore's use of various sweet names for passwords.

The gargoyle sprang to life and stepped aside, allowing Harry to pass onto the revolving spiral staircase.

The office was dark and all of the portraits were snoozing away in their frames. All, with the exception of the headmaster Harry had come to see.

Dumbledore looked at Harry almost expectantly.

"Good evening, Mr. Potter"

Nothing was said for a moment. Harry looked about the room uncomfortably, not really knowing what he was doing there. There were so many thoughts in his head; for the last three hours he'd been privy to the intimate details of a long-dead stranger's life, a person whose name he'd never even heard until yesterday, yet this person had influenced his parents, his teachers, his enemies… and even, in a way, Harry himself.

"How come I'd never even heard the name Ella Brady before all of this?"

Dumbledore's portrait stared at Harry for a long moment, saying nothing.

But Harry wasn't looking at Dumbledore; his eyes were fixed on the floor beneath him. He began to walk aimlessly around the room.

"She knew everyone… she knew my parents, Sirius, Remus, Lucius Malfoy, Snape, you, Voldemort… She's connected to so much of this and she's gone… just like you're gone, just like my parents, just like Sirius. She knew them and they're all gone!"

Harry drove his fingers through his hair as he spoke with increasing fervor.

"She was so ordinary – Just some girl. And I still don't even know how she ended up with Snape or how she ended up fighting Voldemort, but she obviously did something!"

Dumbledore's portrait looked at Harry with concern in his eyes, still silent as the young man became more erratic and irrational with every pace he took.

"I'm apparently lucky though, because I'm the 'Boy Who Lived'. That's all I did: I survived an attack! My parents were the ones who died! They were more powerful than I am and they died!"

Dumbledore tried to interject, "Harry…"

"No! It's just not right. Everyone dies and those that don't only live to mourn them. That's all this is. What's the point of fighting if you're just going to lose people anyway and spend the rest of your days regretting their deaths? Remus gets by somehow. Is that's what going to happen to me? Am I going to become like him?"

"Harry…"

"No!" Harry's gaze, confused, angry, and fearful, turned upward to face the portrait. His voice faltered as his eyes clouded over with emotion.

"Everyone died except for you… I lost them all but I had you. But then you took that away from me!" Harry was almost screaming now, "I'll be just like Remus in twenty years if I survive this… mourning everyone who didn't live to be there with me!"

There was a long moment of silence. Finally, Dumbledore spoke.

"I know."

Harry fell into the chair in front of the desk and hunched over, his hands in his face.

"Sacrifice and loss are an unfortunate necessity of war. Ella Brady sacrificed a chance at a very happy life when she took up her position with the Order, as did your parents and Sirius. But as you know, those choices led to a victory in the war against Voldemort. Your parents were murdered in a horrible way, but because of that you were able to go on and fight, and here you are. Ella's demise changed the entire outcome of the last war and may even help win this one. Everyone who stands against Voldemort puts their life on the line, and some of them do die. But those who are left behind, like Professor Lupin and Professor Snape, live with the guilt of not being able to do more to prevent those sacrifices."

Harry stared hard at Dumbledore portrait.

"Do you think that's what Snape does? That he regrets not being able to 'do more' to help my parents or Sirius? People he hated? Was he doing 'more' when he killed you?"

For the first time since the man had been alive, Harry saw Dumbledore's eyes turn hard.

"Professor Snape has sacrificed more than you can imagine."

Harry shook his head.

"No… I know what sacrifice looks like. So many people have the same terrible look of emptiness and grief. Snape is just black inside. He's bitter, cruel… and despite what he might have been once, that doesn't change what he is now. "

Harry stared defiantly at Dumbledore, daring him to argue , but the portrait simply sighed and looked down at the desk below.

"Open the top drawer on the right."

Harry raised his eyebrows.

"Sir?"

"Just… do as I say."

Harry, feeling a bit sheepish walked around to the back of the desk and opened the top drawer.

There was nothing but a heap of junk inside, from old letters to a spilled bag of lemon drops and one or two Muggle stamps.

"What am I looking for?"

"Close the drawer and then open it again."

Harry slid the drawer shut, and then reopened it.

To his surprise the drawer was nearly empty. The lemon drops and scraps of parchment had disappeared and all that was left was a small, round box made of silver.

Harry picked up the box carefully and slowly opened it.

There was a ring inside.

Harry took a closer look — the band was a finer silver than the box, and as Harry gazed at it he noticed tiny, intricate lines woven into the metal in a pattern unlike any he had ever seen.

"What is this?" Harry asked, unable to take his eyes off the delicate ring.

Dumbledore didn't reply until Harry looked back up at the portrait. "Someone's sacrifice," the ancient wizard said.

Harry blinked, his expression unchanged. What did Dumbledore mean?

"You'll understand when the time comes. But you still have much to hear about the sacrifices of the past." Dumbledore's image sighed. "Now if you please, I am exhausted and would like to rest."

Harry carefully set the ring back in its box and put the box in his pocket. He stood and moved toward the door, but stopped to look back at Dumbledore's portrait, which was now lightly snoozing in sync with the other paintings.

Harry pushed the office door open, but before stepping out, he whispered, "I still can't forgive you."

As he pulled the door shut, Harry could have sworn he heard Dumbledore reply, "Neither could she."

XXXXXXXXXX

Ella sat down in the Room of Requirement with the bottle across from her. She just sat there staring at it, contemplating its contents. It was an ordinary-looking bottle. There was no label. The glass was clear, as was the potion inside, and according to Sipes the mixture was brewed so there was no odor or taste. "All the better on the off chance that you get caught with it," Sipes had said slyly.

Ella couldn't believe she'd actually procured this. Sipes was no amateur at potions, which is why he had managed to have a bit of a business. In fact, he always came out in the top three in Potions, only one slot behind Lily—who always second—and Severus—who of course always took first.

Ella remembered learning about potions of the kind she was now staring at in her fifth year. According to Slughorn, the potions themselves weren't so difficult to create. But the ingredients required were both rare and illegal for anyone but the most advanced Potions researchers to possess. Which made finding said ingredients very difficult and very expensive. Not to mention the fumes the reagents tended to give off were so strong that one needed a secluded workspace for the smell not to be noticed by a professor. On that note, Ella decided she didn't want to know how Sipes could afford to find the ingredients and make the potion. All she needed to know was that it worked.

"The longer you stare at it, the harder it's going to be to take," she breathed to herself.

With one last long sigh, she finally got up and walked to the bottle. She followed Sipes' instructions with exacting precision: measure out exactly half a cup, pour into a glass of water, and drink. Ella hesitated a moment before picking up the cup.

"Well, here's to my future. Bottoms up."

XXXXXXXXXX

Severus idled on his way to Potions. He'd started to notice his change in demeanor, which had shifted from indifferent, as it had always been, to, dare he say… anxious? He shook his head. No, that couldn't be it. Perhaps he was finally tired of listening to Slughorn jabber on about something that sounded like a watered down version of what Severus already knew. His dread of the class had nothing to do with having to sit in the same room with Ella for two hours.

_That's right, this has nothing to do with her._

With that thought firmly in place, Severus raised his shoulders a little more confidently as he marched on toward the dungeons. But by the time he reached the entryway into the classroom, his shoulders had already slumped once more and the tight knots that had been in his stomach since the previous class returned.

He made his way to his desk without looking at a single person in the room, but he somehow already knew that she was there.

Slughorn took attendance and began a droning lecture on the dangers of mixing key blood ingredients with experimental potions. Severus was slightly surprised by the lecture topic. This was a high level N.E.W.T. lesson that had only been included in examinations in the last few years. Because this material was about experimental potions, Slughorn could only lecture on it; demonstrations in front of the class were forbidden. Experimental potions were incredibly dangerous. Potion Masters were the only ones certified to brew them. And while Slughorn was talented, he was not a certified Potion Master.

Severus put his book away, interested to hear just how much Slughorn even knew about the subject. For the next fifteen minutes, the old man explained to the class why unicorn's blood and dragon's blood in one potion could literally cause the imbiber's blood to boil. He moved into some potion chemistry and atomic issues. Most of the class seemed to glaze over as the material grew ever more complex.

"So for those of you planning on a field in potions, a good key rule is to not mix dragon's blood with any other sort of potion already containing the blood of a magical creature," Slughorn concluded.

Severus rolled his eyes; this was nothing new to him. He had just finished an entire text on the effects of blood mixing last summer. He was about to tune Slughorn out and return to his leisure reading when something strange happened.

"Yes Miss Brady, you have a question?" said Slughorn.

"But isn't it true, Professor, that dragon's blood can render a poison made from boggart and fairy blood useless?"

Severus' breath caught in his throat.

_Yes, that's true. But you need to break down the compounds of it more for that to happen. How did she know that?_

Slughorn looked quite surprised at her question and stumbled over himself as he tried to think of a way to respond.

"I'm, um, not entirely sure Miss Brady. Would you care to elaborate?"

Severus was all ears. So too, it seemed, was the rest of the class. It wasn't every day that a a student knew something a teacher did not; despite the fact that Severus probably knew a lot more than Slughorn did, he rarely advertised it in class.

Ella was calculating. Her eyes were bright and one could almost see her thinking out exactly what she was saying. For the first time since walking into class Severus actually looked right at her and saw she had completely changed from the last time he'd seen her. Her skin was healthy-looking again. The bags under her eyes were completely gone. In fact, she looked quite well rested, and had an air of confidence he'd never seen when she was in this class.

"Dragon's blood is potent and potentially poisonous when mixed with a potion containing a magical creature's blood. The dragon blood's compounds are generally superior to those of other magical creatures and thus the dragon's blood will become the dominant ingredient in the potion; however, the properties that arise from it mixed with another creature's blood can turn the potion fatal. Still, poisons made from boggart and fairy blood can be rendered useless with dragon's blood that has been diluted. By taking the tiniest drop of dragon's blood and diluting it in a mixture of water and apple grass, then adding it to the potion, one can make a poison neutral. This is possible due to the fact that there is just enough blood to override the fairy and boggart blood but the apple grass and water keep the properties of the two bloods from creating an even stronger poison. "

Severus` jaw went slack as he stared at Ella. Apparently he wasn't the only one to have this reaction: the class had gone completely silent and most were staring stunned at Ella, waiting in bated breath to see if she was correct.

"Well, um… there you have it class. Well done Miss Brady!" Slughorn's tone was both confused and excited as he congratulated Ella. "I'm pleased to see that you have taken such an extraordinary interest in advanced potions. Well done, indeed! Five points for Gryffindor!" A small chorus of cheers went up from the Gryffindors in the room. Ella beamed.

Slughorn returned to his discussion of experimental potions, albeit a little more unsure of himself.

The class quickly resumed taking notes and asking short questions. Severus, on the other hand, had not looked away from Ella for several minutes. He watched dumbfounded as she sat listening to the lecture with a sort of blissful smirk on her face, not even bothering to copy down notes.

The research on this topic had only come out in the last year and was not in any Hogwarts textbook. She could easily have read the research in a scholarly journal or even in the back section of the Prophet (although why she'd be digging through either of the sources, Snape could not fathom). Yet after spending weeks tutoring her and studying her learning patterns, Severus could not explain how someone like Ella could even begin to fathom the molecular makeup of highly potent ingredients, much less explain it to a qualified professor. Severus himself had only begun to break the surface of understanding when it came to the molecular study of potions. These thoughts left him with one burning question.

_How did she know any of that?_

The lecture was relatively short, and Slughorn gave the class a quiz to work on for the remainder of the period. At the end of the class, when Slughorn returned the results of the quiz, Severus spotted the mark on Ella's page. She had received an Outstanding.

XXXXXXXXXX

The next week seemed went by in a blur for Ella. All the inconsequential minutiae of life, like eating, showering, or going to class, she could barely remember. But all the things she'd read… all the different techniques for cutting ingredients, wand waving, even the tone of voice used in incantations — all of these were beautiful pieces of logic that she could fit together to come up with something astounding. Studying was no longer memorization and learning concepts. Now it was as if she absorbed the knowledge directly from the books and papers. What's more, she didn't waste any time repeating the same things over and over again in an attempt to remember: her power to memorize anything at first glance left her with time to study and still get adequate sleep.

Ella's energy levels had been odd for Ella since taking the potion. Save for quidditch practice, she spent most of the day studying or in class. Yet by the time she crawled into bed every night her body felt like she'd been running laps all day. Ella shrugged this unexpected exhaustion off, attributing it to her body still catching up on sleep from previous weeks.

Although she was more than prepared for the upcoming Potions test, Ella continued to use every waking moment for studying. She found sanctuary in the Room of Requirement and in abandoned classrooms. Ever since her and Severus` confrontation in the library she only went there when she needed to check out more books.

On this particular evening, Beebee the house elf was already in the Room of Requirement when Ella arrived.

"Hi Beebee," Ella said distractedly as she tossed her books onto a table and collapsed into an armchair.

"Hello Miss," said Beebee in a tiny voice. The elf stepped up to the armchair. "Miss… I brought you some dinner."

Ella glanced over at Beebee and noticed for the first time that the house elf was holding a huge plate of food: roasted ham, boiled potatoes, a small salad, and a glass of pumpkin juice.

Ella glanced back at her book, already falling into the steady haze of concentration. She murmured despondently, "No, thank you Beebee. I'm not very hungry."

Beebee put the tray down on the table and looked over at Ella curiously.

"Is the food not to your liking Miss?"

Ella looked down at Beebee as if she'd only just realized the house elf was in the room. "Huh? Oh no…. sorry Beebee, I'm just not very hungry right now."

Beebee nodded and left the tray where it was; she glanced back at the Gryffindor girl.

_Maybe she's on some sort of diet — wizard girls seem to do that a lot._

Ella caught Beebee's gaze.

"I'll leave it here just in cases, Miss. You seem to be working pretty hard and you may get hungry later," Beebee said.

But Ella's eyes were already turned back to her work.

Beebee opened her mouth to say something, but stopped. She bowed to Ella, and then disappeared back to the kitchens, knowing the plate of food would still be untouched later, when she came by to collect the dishes.

Several hours later Ella had just finished another textbook when she started to realize that she was having a hard time memorizing the information. She reached for the small vial she kept on her black ribbon, under her uniform. She pulled the bottle and put it to her lips, but nothing came out. Ella's eyes narrowed. She'd already gone through two vials in the last three days.

_How can I be out again?_

Quickly sitting up, Ella found a spare sheet of parchment and scribbled down a note to Sipes. She grabbed her bag with resignation and walked quickly out of the room. She was moving so fast and was so focused on her destination that she didn't watch as she turned the corner, and smashed head-on into Remus.

Books, quills, and parchment flew everywhere.

"Ella! Are you all right?" asked Remus as he offered her his hand.

Ella was slightly dazed form the impact as Lupin helped her to her feet.

Ella nodded, "Yeah, sorry about that."

Remus began to pick up their books, "Where are you going in such a hurry?"

Ella tried to think of a quick response.

"Oh… I was just hoping to get a book from the library before it closed." She gestured down the hallway.

Remus looked up at her, confused. "Isn't the library the other way?"

Ella was trying to think of a rebuttal when she saw Remus bend over to pick up the piece of parchment she'd dropped. With a quick swoop and a cry, she grabbed the parchment out of Remus` hands before he had time to get a good look at it.

"Sorry Remus, I'm in a real hurry. I'll see you later!" she exclaimed before bolting down the hall. In the wrong direction. She doubled back and gave Remus a weak smile before disappearing around a corner.

Remus watched her go with a worried look on his face.

XXXXXXXXXX

The next day in Potions, Slughorn had the seventh years brew Pepper Up Potion to help stock the medical wing for the oncoming winter season. As usual, Lily and Remus were partnered with Ella. The two Gryffindors hadn't seen much of their friend lately and were happy to get to spend some time talking with her while they worked.

However, by the time Lily and Remus had gotten settled at the workstation with Ella, they already found her absorbed in creating the potion.

"So Ella… we were thinking of having a repeat of last week tonight, you in? " Lily asked.

Ella didn't respond.

"Ella?" Remus asked, then tapped her on the shoulder.

Ella looked up, "Oh, hey guys. I was just starting on the potion."

Lily and Remus looked absolutely dumbfounded.

"Ella, did you even hear Lily?" Remus asked.

Ella stopped and looked up with a questioning look on her face.

"I was seeing if you would be available to hang out tonight. We were thinking of planning another party," Lily said slowly.

Remus looked over Ella, almost inspecting her. He hadn't gotten a chance to really look at her the other day but now he noticed just how thin she looked; her skin was sallow and her pupils were dilated.

_When was the last time she ate? _ Remus thought to himself.

Ella was already putting most of her attention back on the potion.

"Oh, um… thanks guys, but I really have to study," Ella said distantly.

Remus and Lily exchanged looks. Lily opened her mouth to protest but Remus stopped her with a shake of his head. They both began to work on the potion, and aside from a few instructions to one another, nothing else was said… until Lily started chopping up fire plant. Ella's head suddenly snapped up; her eyes locked onto Lily's handiwork.

"If you dice the fire plant instead of chopping it, it will mix faster with the goat liver and the pepper. The faster that happens the more effective the potion is."

Ella was telling Lily how to prepare a potion? This was a first.

Lily was a little shocked and embarrassed at Ella's correction.

_And here I thought she'd just gotten really lucky the other day. _

"So you've done well in Potions recently. Do you have a new tutor or something?"

Still staring at the potion, Ella shook her head. "No," she said.

Remus and Lily exchanged looks again.

"Oh, so are you doing something differently study-wise?" Remus asked.

He received the same answer. "No."

Lily was the one to finally quit beating around the bush and ask the blunt question.

"Ella, last week you failed the Potions quiz and you were panicking about the upcoming test. Now you're able to correct _me_ on ingredient preparation, and the other day, you practically gave Slughorn a discourse on a really advanced area of potions. What the hell?"

Ella, still staring at the potion as it bubbled in the cauldron, said, "It's nothing strange. I just found a report on the subject that explained things really well," Ella replied.

_It wasn't a total lie. _

"And how you know all these tricks for preparing fire plant?" Remus pushed.

"Snape showed me," Ella said automatically.

_Okay, so that one was a lie. _

Remus could only stare at Ella; he knew she wasn't being truthful but could say nothing against her. The trio finished the potion without further incident or conversation. Later, Slughorn praised their work as one of the "finest" Pepper Up Potions he'd ever seen.

As the class packed up and prepared to leave, Remus saw Slughorn approach Ella.

"Excellent job again, Miss Brady. It seems you have a bit of hidden talent for potions, eh?" Slughorn gushed.

Remus saw the small smile Ella gave at the praise and was frustrated that she was hiding something. Out of the corner of his eye he spotted Snape looking in Ella's direction. From the suspicious look on Snape's face, Remus could tell he wasn't the only one who thought something wasn't right.

XXXXXXXXXX

Snape had been working on his Pepper-Up Potion with two other Slytherins when he had first heard Lily Evans say something to Ella in an interrogating sort of way. He listened to their conversation as he went about stirring the potion. His ears pricked up when his name was mentioned.

"And how you know all these tricks for preparing fire plant?" Remus pushed.

"Snape showed me."

At that he turned his head slightly and looked at Ella, who was focused on her potion. After that, their conversation ceased, but Snape made up his mind. He was going to say something to her.

When class ended he filtered out with the rest of the students, then walked down the corridor where it turned a corner and waited.

As Ella came around the corner he emerged, making her gasp in surprise.

"I most certainly did not teach you how to prepare fire plant," Severus said in a cold, even tone.

Ella quickly recovered from the surprise of seeing him. "Eavesdropping now are we? Awww… really Snape, I had no idea you cared," Ella replied dryly.

Snape ignored her comment.

"I tutored you for nearly a month and you could barely name the properties that arise from dragon blood. Now you're suddenly an expert on its compound structure? Somehow I find it difficult to believe that your intelligence on the subject has spiked that much in a few weeks."

For a second Snape thought he saw a look of panic cross Ella's features, but it was only fleeting.

Then a cruel smirk reached her mouth, "Maybe I found a better teacher."

"Unlikely."

The smirk on Ella's face melted away. "Well, when I first started teaching you, you could barely make a dive on a broom and now here you are: Seeker of the Slytherin Quidditch Team. So obviously miracles do happen even for miserable bastards like yourself."

There was that terrible feeling in Severus` gut again. The sense of guilt nagging away at his mind. All Severus could do was stare at her, unable to respond. She couldn't hold his gaze and quickly looked down.

"If you're done butting into my life now, I have things I need to do."

Severus didn't move as he watched her walk away.

XXXXXXXXXX

The small room below the kitchens was filled with a thick haze of blue smoke as a disheveled Russel Sipes worked carefully at one of three brewing cauldrons. He heard the light pitter-patter of footsteps outside the door and went still. He touched his wand to the door and whispered, "Friend or foe?" When the tip of his wand glowed blue he relaxed, then murmured, "Allow entry." The door swung open and Lucius Malfoy sauntered in.

"Ugh… geeze Sipes is it safe to breathe in here?" Malfoy asked, holding his nose.

Russel smirked. "Yeah, just don't touch anything," he said, his attention back on the potion he was brewing.

Lucius looked around at the brewing potions curiously while Sipes continued to work. After a few minutes Sipes seemed to get to a good stopping point on whatever concoction he was working on and turned to Lucius.

"Sorry about that, pretty sensitive stuff, you understand."

Lucius obviously didn't like to be left waiting and gave Russel a glare that stated as much. Sipes answered with an apologetic look. "So, what can I do for you today?" he asked.

"Oh you know… the usual," Lucius said casually.

Sipes nodded and walked to the corner of the room.

"So will it be just the firewhiskey today?" Sipes shouted across the chamber.

Lucius was looking at the cauldron Sipes had just been working at and responded, "Yeah, two bottles if you have it."

Sipes walked back with the firewhiskey.

"Oh, come to think of it, do you have anymore elvleaf?"

Sipes smiled. "Always. Do you need a pipe?"

Lucius shook his head no.

Sipes rummaged in a drawer until he found a small velvet bag. Lucius handed over a small pouch of coins and watched as Sipes counted the galleons.

"A pleasure doing business with you," Sipes said with a crooked smile.

"As always," said Lusicus as he shrunk the items down to a tiny size before placing them in his pocket.

"So, what's this you're brewing over here?" Lucius motioned toward the cauldron Sipes had been working at.

Sipes walked across the room, poured two glasses of red wine from a bottle on a counter, handed one to Lucius, and said, "It's called Le Sagesse. It's like an intelligence potion."

Lucius looked at him questioningly. "What does it do?"

Sipes smile became a little wider. "It removes any and all mental blocks, heightens your focus, and most of all makes your memory so good that it's been described as 'photographic'."

Lucius frowned,."If it does all you say, how come the school doesn't safeguard against it?"

"Probably because the key ingredient is very rare and highly illegal. You don't have potions like this floating around much."

Lucius looked at Sipes almost disbelievingly. "So what's this 'key ingredient' and how did you come to be in possession of it?"

Sipes shrugged his shoulders. "My secrets are what keep me in business."

Lucius rolled his eyes.

"So how come I've never heard of this stuff before? It doesn't sound like it's a part of your regular inventory."

Sipes scoffed, "It's generally not. Trust me, it's a pain to brew. I generally make one or two batches a year, usually around O.W.L.S and N.E.. But I have a buyer who is struggling in one of her courses and is paying top dollar. She's practically ordering a new batch every other day. Speaking of which, I happen to have some extra put aside, if you're interested."

Malfoy took a sip of his wine and seemed to weigh the offer.

"Maybe when N.E.W.T.s come around. I'm doing pretty well in all my courses at the moment. Are there any side effects?"

Sipes looked thoughtful. "My customers have said they generally felt worn out by the end of the day. The only thing you really have to worry about is getting the concentration right; if you take too high a dosage, you could do some serious damage to yourself. But other than that you'll just feel really tired at the end of the day and also experience a loss of appetite… which might explain why Brady has looked so thin the last few times I've seen her, now that I think about it…"

Malfoy choked on his wine.

"Your 'buyer' is Ella Brady?!"

Sipes nodded his head.

"She's a Gryffindor and you sell to her? You're a Slytherin for fuck's sake!"

Sipes was undeterred by Malfoy's reaction.

"Yes, I am a Slytherin, but that comes second to the money I make. Honestly Lucius if I had a written list of everyone that bought from me, it would astound you to see how many of them are outside the house."

Lucius shook his head at Sipes. "But Sipes, it's so beneath us."

Sipes poured himself another glass of wine.

"Perhaps, but it's good for business. No one would ever suspect them buying from a Slytherin, so no one will think to look in my direction."

There was no response from Malfoy. Sipes looked up and found his fellow Slytherin quite lost in thought.

"Lucius?" Russel prodded.

Malfoy blinked and looked up, a curious and plotting sort of look in his eye.

"How high?" he asked.

Sipes looked confused. "Sorry?"

"How high would the concentration on the potion need to be 'do some serious damage'?"

Russel caught his meaning.

"Oh no, Lucius," said Sipes as he got up to clear away the wine glasses.

"There is one thing I'm not accustomed to hearing Russel, and that one thing is 'no'."

Sipes stared at Lucius with a sort of pleading look in his eye.

"Lucius, I give my customers what they ask for. Something like this could ruin my reputation."

Sipes was squirming a bit nervously now and Lucius couldn't help but grin.

"Sipes, it's Ella fucking Brady. Do you know who we're talking about? If word got out that the Queen of the Mudbloods was taking an illegal intelligence enhancing potion, that 'oh so perfect' bitch would have her reputation ripped to shreds. Trust me, no one knows she's taking this stuff… no one, save for you and me."

Malfoy could see Sipes pondering the thought.

"So your reputation would be safe."

Sipes still seemed reluctant to go through with it.

"I'm not asking you to substitute her order with something else, Russel. Hell, if anything, you're giving her more than her money's worth. It could almost be considered… an upgrade."

Malfoy slowly circled Sipes as he made his justifications, and it was clear that Sipes was beginning to weaken. Now all Malfoy needed to do was add one last little incentive to push him over.

"Not to mention, I have no problem compensating you for any losses." Lucius took out a large purse of coins and let them clatter a bit as he placed them on the desk next to Sipes.

Sipes picked up the pouch, slowly tugged it open, and let a few galleons slide into his hand. "Well…" he said, jingling the coins in his palm, "I am a business man."

XXXXXXXXXX

Ella had just come up to her room from the library with another stack of books in tow. Everyone was down at dinner and would be out for a while, considering that it was a Friday night. So it was a great time to have the dormitory to herself to get some studying done.

She sat down at the small desk near her bed and began to organize her notes and the books she had picked out. After getting everything set up she pulled out the small package she'd picked up from Sipes earlier in the evening. She looked over her shoulder to make sure no one was about to come through the door before slowly and carefully unwrapping it.

She reached for the ribbon hidden below her blouse and pulled it out. In one swift motion she took the now empty vial on the ribbon off, shrank the new bottle in the package and placed it on the ribbon.

She smiled lovingly at the delicate glass vial that had brought her such success in such a short amount of time.

"Right, now let's get to more learning."

She uncorked the vial and put to her lips, taking a small sip of the clear liquid.

Her mind began to open up, and without even realizing it she had already opened a book from the stack and started wizzing through the pages at an extraordinary pace. Within ten minutes she'd read nearly 100 pages. The information was coming in so fast there was barely time to register it. She tore her eyes away from the book just for a split second and looked at the wood on the desk. The small grains of ancient wood were suddenly so clear to her, and the desk didn't seem so solid anymore, but more like a fragile puzzle that, with one small flick of her finger, could break into the million separate pieces of grain she saw beneath her hand.

Ella felt her eyes straining from the focus and blinked rapidly. She stood up and put her hand to her hair. She could feel every tiny imprint on her fingernail as she pushed her hands to her forehead. She quickly took them off and looked around the room. She could see everything! She could see the small particles of dust in the air, the fibers on her duvet cover. She looked around the room and as she caught sight of the window there was so much to focus on. The stars themselves were more alive than she had ever seen them and it was too hard to follow every direction their light seemed to spread. Some bats were flying in the distance and she knew exactly which coordinates they were flying at. The wind and the trees themselves had more activity than she ever remembered them having before. She turned her eyes back to the room, but it was all starting to blur into one dizzying perception, and she felt her body beginning to sway a bit. She felt sick from dizziness and as she turned to the desk in a vain attempt to reach for something to grab on to – everything went black.

End Chapter Eleven

**Alright, so a bit of a cliff hanger. The next chapter is already under way and I would love to hear any feedback you guys have!**


	12. Fix The Broken: Part I

Ch. 12 Fix The Broken: Part I

Later than night, Remus, Lily, James and Sirius stumbled in through the Gryffindor portrait hole in states ranging from tipsy to completely hammered. It had been another drunken party for the Mauraders, and as usual James and Sirius required assistance to get back to the tower.

Lily, who was supporting a slightly conscious James, slipped a little under her boyfriend's weight.

"Apparently I need to start drinking earlier in the night," she grunted, "then for once maybe I'll be the one needing help back and someone can babysit me."

Remus laughed a little as Sirius, who was trying to stand straight while using Remus as a support, dropped his bag.

"Seeing as how badly these two hold their drink, it wouldn't matter how early you started, they'd still be drunker than you."

"Hey…hey…I…take offense…to that," groaned Sirius.

"Well, you can berate me in the morning for it. Right now let's just get you and James to bed," Remus said, bemused.

Lily kissed James on the cheek then passed him off to Remus, who somehow managed to support both boys with ease. Seeing as how Remus had his hands full Lily decided to throw the invisibility cloak over Remus` shoulder.

"Well the others should be back soon. Good luck getting these two to bed."

Remus gave Lily a look that said 'Yeah, I'll need it.'

"See you in the morning," Remus murmured before walking up the steps to the boys' dormitory.

Putting Sirius and James to bed turned out to be less of an event than Remus expected. James was so out of it Remus just needed to walk to the edge of James` bed, let go of James` shoulders and the messy haired boy fell into the bed with a slight thump. The poor boy was already asleep before his head even hit the pillow. Sirius, for all his trying at standing straight and maintaining balance, had given up at these fruitless attempts and crawled on all fours to his bed before slowly climbing in.

Remus looked around the room, and saw that all the other beds were empty.

_Still out partying, _Remus thought to himself as he opened his trunk. As he was pulling out his pajamas, Remus couldn't help feeling as if he had forgotten something. As he looked over at a sleeping James, he suddenly remembered the invisibility cloak. However, as he brought a hand up to take the cloak off his shoulder from where Lily had tossed it moments earlier his eyes went wide. It wasn't there. Remus looked to the ground to see if the cloak had fallen off when he walked into the room…. but it wasn't there either. Remus hurried out of the room back towards the common room. As he reached the end of the steps that lead from the boys' dormitory into the common room, he sighed in relief. The cloak had fallen off his shoulder on the way up the stairs.

Remus leaned over to pick up the cloak when he turned at the sound of footsteps running down the stairs.

Remus looked up into Lily's terrified face.

"Remus, thank god you're still here! It's Ella, come quick!"

XXXXXXXXXX

Remus made a mad dash up the stairwell to the girls' dormitory, but only managed to climb three steps before the stairs became a slide. He skidded back down to the common room floor. He growled in frustration.

Lily was half way up the stairs already and looked a little hopeless as Remus glanced back up at her in worry.

Then he remembered something.

"Go Lily, I'll be right there!"

"But how…"

But Remus was already racing back up to the boys' dormitory.

Remus silently entered the room and went over to Sirius` wardrobe. It took him only a second to find the small velvet pouch of floo powder. Students were technically not supposed to have floo powder within the castle. But this was Sirius — having a little floo powder paled in comparison to many other school rules he had broken.

Remus didn't waste any time: he knew he couldn't floo to the girls' dorm from the boys, so he ran back to the common room and was thankful to see there was still a small fire alight.

A few seconds later, Remus stepped into the seventh year girls' dormitory.

"What happened?" he asked in an urgent tone.

Lily was hunched over Ella's still form with two fingers on Ella's throat, looking for a pulse.

Remus gasped, "Oh my god."

Remus` mind went into panic mode as he saw his best friend lying motionless on the floor.

"She's alive," Lily said in obvious relief.

Remus knelt down near Ella and felt her forehead while Lily began to check for any other injuries.

"She's burning up."

Remus heard Lily suggest they get Ella to the hospital wing but didn't respond. He spotted a piece of Ella's black ribbon around her neck he fingered it a little and that was when he saw it… a small blue-green glass vial peeking out through Ella's multiple layer of clothes.

"Remus?" Lily asked.

Without looking away from the vial he was now inspecting, Remus responded with a "Hmm?"

Lily repeated her statement: "We need to get her to the hospital wing."

Remus found the small cork on the vial, gingerly took it off, and hesitantly took a whiff. He frowned, then poured a small drop on his finger — it was colorless.

"What is it Remus?" Lily asked.

"It has no odor and no color."

"What?" Lily asked incredulously.

She peered over at the vial and the drop on Remus' finger before taking a small sniff herself. Her face formed into the same worried frown that Remus was wearing.

"Is she breathing all right?" Remus asked as Lily continued to examine the vial.

Lily nodded, "Yeah, her heartbeat is steady but I'm really worried about her fever."

"I don't think we should take her to the medical wing. Not if we can help it anyway."

"Remus, you can't be serious! We have no idea what she took. This could have done a lot more damage than we think!"

Remus looked at her knowingly, "I get that. But if she had the potion in a secret vial around her neck, I think it might be something she's not supposed to have."

Lily seemed to catch on.

"There are very few potions that are both colorless and odorless, and they're generally made that way so that they can go undetected. Like veritaserum."

"If Ella is taking something that's undetectable, it can't be good. If we bring her to the medical wing and it's something illegal or against school rules, she could be expelled," Remus said urgently.

"Remus, we can't just leave her be and hope she gets better. This could get worse in a matter of minutes as far as we know! She could die if we don't do anything!" Lily yelled.

"If we bring her to the medical wing, it could ruin her life!" Remus shouted back. He rose and began pacing the room.

"We just need to find out what she took before we bring her to Madam Redfern," he said desperately.

"That could take ages, Remus. I mean we're good at potions but this could be anything."

Remus grabbed the vial from Lily's hand and looked at it again.

"We have whatever she took right here, at least we're assuming that she took this. So that's something to start with. If her condition starts to get worse, we'll take her to the hospital wing no questions asked. I just don't want to bring her in, have it turn out she would have been okay after a night's sleep, and then have her expelled."

Lily stared at the ground. After a few seconds she looked up again with a face of resolve.

"All right, well, first things first: we need to get her out of here. The others could walk in the door at any second."

Remus fished in his back pocket and produced a scrap of parchment; he held his wand over it before muttering, "I solemnly swear I am up to no good."

Remus found their fellow Gryffindors on the map walking towards the portrait hole -- they were only a few feet away.

"Shit, they're almost to the door. Grab your potions books!"

Lily grabbed her satchel off the floor while Remus carefully picked up Ella and carried her out the door.

"If they're about to come in through the portrait hole, how are we getting out?" Lily asked.

Remus motioned for her to pick up the map he had set on the dresser in his haste to carry Ella.

"You see the fireplace in the common room?"

"Yeah. What about it?"

"If you look close enough on the map you see that it's a door and it leads into a secret passage that comes out on the seventh floor corridor. But we have to hurry and get through it before the others open the portrait."

Lily looked at Remus' shoulder and said, "Hey, you still have James' invisibility cloak!"

Remus looked down. "Thank god for that."

Lily took the cloak and threw it over Remus and Ella; it was barely large enough to hide them but it worked.

Lily and Remus began to walk down the steps of the girls' dormitory that led into the common room when he realized too late that it had been a bad idea. The stairs suddenly flattened and turned into a slide. He thankfully had thought to pull Ella closer to him to protect her head from hitting the stair rail on the way down.

Remus quickly stood upon reaching the bottom and looked up to see Lily running down the last few steps, which had materialized within a matter of seconds. The duo ran toward the fireplace when they heard they heard the other Gryffindors drunkenly saying the password to the common room.

"Quick Lily, the third brick from the left, tap it with your wand three times!"

Lily did so and then watched as the fireplace swung open to reveal a door.

Remus and Lily ran in through the entry and closed the fireplace just as Thomas Jordan entered the common room.

XXXXXXXXXX

On the seventh floor, the hallway was completely deserted and all the portraits and paintings were blissfully snoozing. A small door behind a suit of armor in the middle of the corridor silently opened.

Two Gryffindors were careful not to knock over the suit of armor as they stepped out into the open hall.

Lily checked the map to see if there was anyone walking around on the floor.

"We're all clear."

Remus took the invisibility cloak off his body but kept Ella hidden underneath it in case anyone happened upon them. He and Lily began to walk down the hall, anxious as ever.

_We need to find a safe place for Ella._

Remus' eyes were darting everywhere looking for a classroom or any room but all there was were paintings. They reached the end of the hall and turned around to try the other end of it.

_We need to find a safe place for Ella._

He was starting to get even more nervous as they reached the other end of the hall and only found a broom closet. The two looked at each other then headed back to where they came from, hoping they had missed something.

_We need to find a safe place for Ella._

As they walked past a strange tapestry of a Barnaby teaching trolls the balley for what seemed like the umpteenth time, Lily let out a loud whisper.

"Look Remus! There's a door!"

Remus closed his eyes and opened them again.

_How did we miss that? I didn't see it before._

Lily tried the door know. "It's unlocked," she whispered.

"Thank god, her fever is getting really bad," Remus said.

The two Gryffindors stepped into the room. As the door swung shut behind them they came upon something they hadn't anticipated.

There, sitting on a large armchair in front of a giant fireplace, with a book on his lap and his wand pointed directly at them, was Severus Snape.

"How the hell did you get in here?"

XXXXXXXXXX

The two looked shocked as Severus stood, his wand still raised.

"I asked you a question," Severus said silkily.

"There was a door… we just came through it, that's all," Lily said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

A confused look passed over Severus' features as he slowly lowered his wand, yet continued to watch them carefully.

Remus whispered to Lily, "I thought you said there was no one up here."

Lily whispered back, "According to the map, there IS no one up here."

Remus looked down and was happy to see the cloak was still covering Ella.

"Why are you in here, Snape?" Remus asked, obviously trying to focus the attention elsewhere.

Severus continued to eye them carefully as he looked the two of them up and down and seemed to pay particular notice of the unusual position of Remus's arms.

"I feel I should you be asking you that question, Remus. Does Potter know you're sneaking around the castle with his girlfriend at this hour? Oh, to see the look of anguish on his face when he discovers his most trusted friend and his girlfriend are going behind his back!"

"That's not what's going on," Lily said defensively.

Remus appeared more and more apprehensive as Severus watched them and leaned over to quietly mutter to Lily.

"Let's go Lily. We'll find somewhere else."

Lily, however, did not look like she wanted to go somewhere else. Remus had seen her constantly looking back at where Ella's invisible form was in her arms and wondering how much worse the unconscious girl was getting. They were in a tight situation. They had no idea what was wrong with Ella or what she had taken and they couldn't bring her to the medical wing without risking expulsion. Now here they were in the first room they found after curfew with the school's smartest—but biggest—pain in the ass.

"Where Remus? The longer we look for somewhere else, the worse she could be getting," Lily said, not even trying to whisper.

Severus frowned at Lily' words.

_What is she babbling about and why won't Remus put his bloody arms down?_

Lily gave Remus a pleading look and said, "I'm telling him. He's probably the best person we can find right now to figure out what's going on. I'm not letting her get any worse while we aimlessly try to find a place to help her."

"What the hell is going on? What are you talking about?" Severus asked, getting frustrated.

Lily let out a breath then seemed to pull on thin air, then a cloak appeared in her hand and there was Ella lying corpse-like in Remus's arms.

Remus walked over and laid Ella down on the large armchair that Severus had been occupying a few moments ago; his arms were visibly weary from having held her for so long. But Severus wasn't paying attention to Remus and his physical state. His eyes were completely focused on the small brunette in the arm chair. It almost didn't look like Ella from Severus' vantage point. Ella wasn't weak. She was always the epitome of strength and stubbornness… this looked like someone else.

There was a long silence among the three seventh years as Severus eyed Ella for a moment, coming up within inches of her face to get a closer look but being careful not to touch her.

"What happened?" Severus asked as he continued to closely study Ella.

"We don't know. I came back to the dormitory about fifteen minutes ago and found her passed out on the floor. Her heart was steady and her breathing seemed fine but she's running a terrible fever," Lily said quickly, her voice full of concern.

Remus stepped forward and held out the vial on the black ribbon. "We found this on her. We don't know what it is but we think it's what caused this."

Severus took it from Remus and gave it the same inspection the two Gryffindors had earlier.

"You were stupid to not bring her to the infirmary," Snape said, his words cutting.

"She could be expelled for whatever that stuff is!" Remus argued.

Snape turned to him, his eyes pure black.

"She might have taken some mysterious potion and blacked out from it. She's running a fever and you two are running around without a clue in your mind of how to help her. As far as you know she could be past the point of recovery right now. Like I said… you were stupid."

Remus and Lily went quiet.

After another moment of checking Ella's vitals, Snape picked her up in his arms and walked towards the corner of the room. He stood and stared, then a second later a bed appeared.

"What? How… how did he do that?" Lily asked aghast.

Snape carefully laid her down, then took out the vial again.

"So I take it you're going to summon Madam Redfern," Remus stated.

"Why would I do that?" Severus asked with a raised eyebrow.

"You just tore us down as idiots for not bringing her to the infirmary!" Lily said, annoyed.

Severus walked over to a work table that neither Lily or Remus had noticed before and poured a small amount of the fluid from the vial into three tiny cauldrons. "No," he murmured, "I called you stupid for not bringing her to the infirmary because you have no idea what you're doing or what she took… I, on the other hand, do know… or at least, have a good idea."

"But Madam Redfern-" Lily began.

"It would take Madam Redfern at least two days to figure out what it is that Ella took and by that time Ella could be brain dead if it's what I think it is," said Severus as he watched the cauldrons.

"What do you think it is?" Remus asked.

Severus looked at the cauldrons for a moment before looking up at him.

"Have you noticed anything… odd about her recently?"

Remus narrowed his eyes, "She doesn't seem to have been eating… she's always studying so we never see her at meals anymore and she looks pretty thin. She has been really secretive. I've bumped into her once or twice and she lied to me about where she was going."

Lily's eyes lit up, "She's been doing so well in potions. She knew things that not even I did… things Slughorn didn't even seem to know. When we tried to talk to her she couldn't seem to pay attention to us. All she could pay attention to was her work."

Severus stepped away from the cauldron for a moment and walked over to a small shelf where there were several bottles and jars of what looked to be ingredients.

"I think that Ella has been taking a potion to help her remember things or to enhance her intelligence… maybe both. But if that's the case, then something must have gone wrong; intelligence potions can be dangerous but not like this."

Severus took several ingredients off the shelf and poured a few into the cauldron.

"What's that?" Remus asked.

Severus looked at Remus with a raised eyebrow and said in a condescending voice,

"_These _are 'test reactions'. They will help me determine what the three main ingredients in the potion Ella took are, which will then establish an identification of the potion she took."

Lily and Remus took a seat near where Ella was lying. Ella was soaked with sweat and as Lily moved closer to her she noticed a bedside table materialize with a bowl of cold water and a soft flannel. Remus and Lily stared at the bowl wide-eyed, then Lily began to soak the flannel and laid the cool cloth on Ella's forehead.

"What is this place? How come things keep materializing out of nowhere?" Remus asked Snape.

Severus stopped what he was doing and looked at Remus. "It's called the Room of Requirement, or the 'Come and Go Room' as the house elves call it. All I really know is that when you have a powerful intent or a strong need for something, the room appears with whatever you require. Within limits of course."

Severus looked down at the now boiling cauldrons and began to add other ingredients he had grabbed from the shelf. A few minutes later the test reactions were complete.

"Shit," Severus muttered to himself as he wiped his hands clean with a cloth similar to the one resting on Ella's forehead.

Remus and Lily stood up and walked over to look at the cauldrons.

One of the cauldrons had a yellow sort of substance that was very thick, the other was as fluid as water and was a light blue, and the last was frothy and red.

"It looks like Ella took something called Le Segasse, which literally translates to mean 'the wisdom.' It opens your mind and removes any sort of blocks you have, then it enhances your memory. It can literally make someone seem like a genius," Severus explained.

Severus kept his voice calm, but the situation had just become exponentially more dire.

"'Le Segasse'… I've never heard of it," Lily stated.

Severus looked at her as if she had just dribbled on her shirt, then returned his gaze to Ella and continued dryly,

"Most intelligence potions are illegal; they give a person too much of an advantage over others. But they aren't pleasant. They cause you to lose your appetite and wear you out faster. Another reason that these potions are illegal is because the active ingredient, sap from a Curvind tree, is rare and dangerous, and can cause death with one dose in its pure form."

"So why did it do this to Ella? She's been taking it all week from the sound of it and she didn't pass out then," Remus asked.

"The dose that was given to Ella was highly concentrated. That's what makes these potions very unsafe. If you don't get the concentration low enough your mind goes into overdrive. It absorbs literally every detail you see and tries to connect it with other details you've observed — almost like a puzzle that won't stop trying to put itself together. The point is, it was too much for Ella's brain to handle and it sent her body into shock."

"But she's unconscious now, and it will eventually wear off so she should be all right. Won't she?" Remus asked.

Severus had walked back over to the shelf of ingredients and began pulling ingredients off in haste.

"It's not that simple. Despite the fact that Ella is unconscious, her mind is still working in overdrive. That's why she's feverish and sweating. Her being unconscious has slowed it down a little but it's still too much."

Severus sat the ingredients on the worktable.

He got everything in place and then looked back up at Remus as he spoke, making his tone serious.

"The potion will eventually wear off, but since it was a high concentration it will last longer, and by the time it's run its course, she could have serious brain damage."

Snape's final words hung in the air. For the first time that evening there was a definite sense that Ella was in real, imminent danger.

"Is there a way we can cure her?" Lily asked, her eyes slightly tearing up.

Severus focused his attention back on the worktable, chopped up several leaves and herbs, and then cut up an apple; he put all the ingredients into a small goblet of water.

"I need to find something that will be strong enough to neutralize the tree sap," he said, half to himself.

Severus walked over to Ella's bed with the goblet in his hand; with more gentleness than either the Gryffindors would have guessed he possessed, he carefully tilted Ella's head back and slowly made her swallow the contents of the cup.

"What's that?" Remus asked.

"It will help slow her mind down a little more and it should bring her body temperature down."

Remus perked up, "What would we need to neutralize the Curvind sap?"

"I don't know," Severus muttered quietly as he sat on the side of the bed and placed the goblet on the nightstand.

"You said we needed something to neutralize the tree sap. There must be a cure…"

"I never said there was some known cure. This doesn't happen very often and when it does no one documents it because it's illegal. But considering the Curvind sap is the active ingredient in that potion, if we can find something to overtake it then it might work! But, considering how strong Curvind tree sap is, anything we gave Ella to neutralize it could kill her in the process!" Severus shouted. He was trying to think and they wouldn't stop asking all these bloody questions.

Lily and Remus looked at each other, seemingly defeated.

"So we have to get help. We need to do something!" Lily cried at Remus.

"And what do you suggest exactly?" Severus said dryly.

"I don't know! But anything!"

Remus was staring at his feet and looked positively melancholy. "No matter what we do, she can't get out of this. We either turn her in and hope a healer can do something… but then she'll just be arrested. I can't do that."

Lily put her face in her hands, obviously distressed. "No! I refuse to let her sit here and lose her mind!" she cried.

Severus sat still on the edge of the bed and looked down at Ella, deep in thought. His eyes shifted back and forth as he began to weigh an idea.

Then Severus stood abruptly — suddenly set on a mission. He crossed the room in three quick strides and hastily pulled his robe on over his disheveled Oxford shirt. He picked up his tie and looked as if he was about to put it back on, but seemed to change his mind and threw it back down on the table next to his books. Lily and Remus looked at him with confused eyes.

"Wait, where are you going?" Remus demanded. But Snape had his mind set on something and didn't even bother to pause to look at Remus, much less give him an answer. "Snape, where are you going?" Remus said again, more forcefully.

As Snape found his satchel he muttered, "It doesn't concern you."

In a split second Remus was in front of the black haired boy who found himself pushed roughly against the wall. Suddenly, Severus' intent was forgotten and the confusion, and fear that was in the room evaporated. Everything went still as he found himself looking at a very scared and angry Remus, whose aggression at that moment shocked even him.

"I came back tonight to find one of my best friends unconscious and I can't bring her to a bloody healer because she'll be arrested but if we don't do anything soon she could have brain damage. Yet, according to you there's nothing we can do because there's no known cure! So, don't tell me it's none of 'my concern' when I ask you where you're going… because right now, _it bloody well is_!"

Severus' first impulse was to hex Remus into the next century… but he stopped himself. Remus was scared — really scared. He should be. It was an impossible situation and Remus could literally do nothing to help Ella… but there was one last thing Severus could try.

Severus looked Remus in the eye, and then shoved him off. "If you want any help or any possibility of getting her out of this in one piece, then you might want to get out of my way," Severus replied sternly.

Remus stared at Severus for a long moment. But after what seemed like the longest staring contest in the world, he stepped aside. As Snape walked towards the door however, he was stopped once again, this time by Lily.

"Snape, wait… I have a feeling you might need this."

Severus stopped and turned; there in front of him was a strange map. As he looked it over, he had to say he was impressed with the ingenuity of the enchantment, but would never state as much. Giving the parchment one more look, he figured out how it worked quite quickly. He grabbed it and put it in his pocket. Turning towards the door, he twisted the knob, stepped into the hall and disappeared into the dark corridor.

XXXXXXXXXX

The blackness of the hall wrapped around Severus, engulfing him. He could hear the portraits snoozing as he carefully made his way down the hall towards the staircases. Once at the top of the landing, Severus whispered "lumos" and his wand glowed bright enough for him to read the enchanted parchment in front of him. He still couldn't quite grasp the fact that Remus had something like this… then his thoughts turned to Black and Potter.

_No wonder they always seem to elude trouble._

His lit wand slowly moved over the parchment. According to the map, Filch was on the east end of the castle. Flitwick was also on patrol but from the look of it he had caught Orsin Wiley and Mary Wansworth in the Astronomy Tower and was probably breaking up some scandalous situation. Snape would've been titillated, had he such an emotion in his repertoire. All and all, he had a clear path to where he needed to go: the dungeons.

With the comfort of knowing he would make it to his destination unseen, Severus allowed his mind to reflect on the events which had transpired in the last half hour.

Ella was back in the Room of Requirement and in serious danger of becoming a vegetable.

The reality of the situation, which Severus had somehow been holding back, finally hit him. The familiar knots that had been twisting away at his stomach for the last two weeks were once again plaguing him. Severus shook his head almost as if in a daze.

_No, this is not my fault._

Despite what he told himself the twinge of guilt that had been in the back of his head suddenly weighed heavily on his conscious mind.

_She wouldn't have done something so stupid if I had still be tutoring her. _

But then Severus' rationale kicked in to combat the guilt.

_No! I tried — I was at the Room of Requirement at the same time and day that we always got together. She didn't show up — that was her decision._

Severus nodded his head.

_Yes, she was the one that couldn't get over our argument, which she made a big deal. I acted naturally. Just as she asked. Then she got angry for no reason!_

Severus' resolve didn't last long as memories of the events from the last few weeks overcame him. He remembered the look on her face as he won the position of seeker with her watching from the edge of the pitch. Then the exhausted and disappointed look on her face when she had received a failing grade on her quiz last week. Then lastly, her fragile body in the small bed in the Room of Requirement after finding out she had essentially drugged herself into a coma.

_I could have done something, I knew something wasn't right and now she's in real danger._

The always rational Severus Snape had been beaten by his guilt, yet his footsteps hastened towards his destination. It was imperative that this worked for not only Ella but for the sake of his conscience. Severus glanced at the map again; the path was still clear. He wasn't far from the dungeons — just one more staircase to go. As Severus descended the staircase and entered the dungeons he passed the hall that led into the Slytherin common room. He stopped and glanced at it nervously almost expecting a fellow Slytherin—or worse, Slughorn—to emerge from behind the entry but no one did. Severus took a deep breath and began walking towards the end of the long hallway, which turned and twisted sharply at the strangest moments. His mind flashed back to the end of last year when Slughorn had enlisted him to help in reorganizing his private stores.

"_Severus my boy, I'm so glad you could help me with this small favor. Everyone else seems so preoccupied with final exams… something you're probably more than prepared for am I right?" Slughorn winked at Severus who merely stared at the potion professor — giving him a look that would one day be infamous for striking fear into his students. Slughorn coughed, obviously a little uncomfortable with Severus` lack of response, then not so subtly removed the wards which guarded the entrance to his private lab and personal stores. _

_Severus had not exactly volunteered for this but when the Head of Slytherin asked for his assistance he found himself unable to refuse. He had to admit he was curious about what types of things Slughorn may have in his private collection of ingredients. Despite Slughorn's inferior position of potions professor rather than potions master, Severus didn't get his hopes too high on finding anything extraordinary in the collection… but one could never be sure._

_They walked into the ancient looking lab and Severus quickly surveyed the numerous shelves stocked full with various ingredients and elixirs. He heard Slughorn talking, but out of habit, had already blocked him out as he began reading off labels. As he came to a particularly old looking shelf at the back of the room he spotted a red bottle, which for some reason grabbed his attention. Severus walked over to the shelf and made to pick the bottle up so that he could read the label, which was written in a loopy sort of script that he didn't recognize as Slughorn's. As he made this motion, the soft hum of Slughorn's voice lecturing in the background turned urgent and loud as he shouted, "Don't touch that!" Snape's arm stopped mid-way as his attention turned back toward Slughorn. Slughorn hurried over toward the shelf Severus was facing then looked at Severus a little apologetically. _

"_I'm sorry for shouting — it's just that this particular shelf…" Slughorn seemed to be thinking of how to put his words, "Well, let's just say it has many sensitive specimens." _

_Severus looked back at the shelf and squinted to read the label of the bottle he had almost picked up. _

_It was basilisk venom! Basilisk venom was not only incredibly rare, but by law Slughorn had no business having it in his possession._

_Severus turned toward Slughorn wide-eyed. "Professor, how do you have basilisk venom? Don't you need written permission from the head of the Department of Regulation of Magical Creatures as well as ten years experience as a potions master to have this?" Severus said disbelievingly. _

_Slughorn replied in a tone that was half embarrassed, half gloating. "Technically, yes, but I haven't done anything illegal. You see my predecessor was a potions master who did a lot of research over the years involving powerful ingredients and the like. He sadly passed away during his tenure here at Hogwarts. Well, he had no family and no one ever came to collect his belongings so most of his collection was inherited by me when I took my post here."_

_Severus just looked at Slughorn. Somehow he got the impression that Dumbledore didn't know about this. _

_Slughorn continued, fully gloating now. "As you can see I have quite a lot of things that I would not have been able to obtain by typical means."_

_Severus frowned at Slughorn's ego but continued to be hypnotized by the various bottles and jars in front of him. Selkie skin, unicorn hair, horrin vine, there were ingredients Severus had only heard of or read of in books but never actually seen. He heard Slughorn cough, obviously trying to get his attention. "I think I should show you the part of the lab you will be helping me reorganize today. Come now." Severus gave one last longing look at the shelf then pulled himself away to go help Slughorn._

Slughorn had never mentioned the items on the shelf again and Severus had never asked but it had definitely not been the last time Severus had thought about it.

There had been many powerful and rare ingredients on the shelf from the little Severus had seen but there was only one he needed. It was ironic that Ella had just given an explanation of it only earlier this week. Dragon's blood had indeed been proven to neutralize even the strongest poisons, but now Severus was making his own theories. The reagents which had appeared earlier had given him more than just the identity of the active ingredients in Le Segasse. The tests had revealed that the Curvind tree sap had a similar molecular structure to that of many poisons. If this was the case, then the two ingredients would neutralize each other, rendering both harmless.

Aside from this being only a theory, Severus also had to hope that Slughorn happened to be in illegal possession of the rare ingredient, all while being able to administer it to Ella in time. Not to mention, if he got caught he would no doubt lose his apprenticeship and his position at Hogwarts.

Severus ran through the risks one more time. No matter how much of a bastard he was, he knew he wouldn't forgive himself if Ella didn't make it through this. This was literally her only shot. Taking one last deep breath, Severus raised his wand and completed the complex charm of taking down the wards.

He carefully opened the door and ran to the other side of the room where the shelf was. There were more bottles and jars than Severus remembered and some of them weren't even labeled. Severus felt a wave of terror go through him at this realization. Suddenly time seemed to be slipping away and Severus began to doubt himself.

_Get your head on straight. Just stay calm and think._

This seemed to help Severus focus as he scanned the handwritten bottles. There was black widows' legs, essence of saleer, pixie wings, thestral pins, but still no sign of dragon's blood. Come to think of it, there were a lot of things Snape didn't see that were pretty basic for a potions professor to have especially for a collection as extensive as this one. Had Slughorn been using up his basic ingredients? Or were they missing for some other reason? As Snape thought on this, he reached the bottom shelf and began reading labels.

Then he noticed something.

Several bottles at the very back had been knocked over and not exactly visible to someone who wasn't looking carefully. Snape reached at the back of the shelf and gently picked up each bottle one by one. As he picked a fourth bottle he saw written in the same loopy scrawl as the other labels, _Dragon's Blood_. The feeling of success and relief was immediate as Severus quickly placed the half full bottle in his satchel. Then with one glance at the Maurader's Map to make sure his path was clear, Severus bolted out the door into an anxious run out of the dungeons. Despite all his nervousness be couldn't push away the nagging feeling that he had forgotten something. He ignored it and focused on simply getting back to the Room of Requirement. Time was critical.

XXXXXXXXXX

Remus sat near Ella watching her breathe — making sure that breath wouldn't cease. The potion Snape had given her had bought them some time, but Remus knew time was still short. He couldn't remember having ever felt so low or so utterly useless. Having spent the last six years with Sirius, James, and Peter he had gotten himself into some pretty interesting situations but never anything this dire. The consequences if they turned Ella in or if they waited were not ideal to say the very least.

Remus slumped his head forward in both exhaustion and desperation. He turned and looked at Lily who had been looking through Snape's books. She paced back and forth between the massive fireplace and the worktable where the three cauldrons and their reagents still sat. Occasionally Lily would poke around the ingredients shelf and the table.

Ella looked even paler than when they had first brought her in, but true to Snape's word, her temperature had gone down considerably. Yet almost as if out of habit or just to feel as if he had some purpose, he continued to dab her forehead with the wet flannel. Just as he was about to wring out the flannel once again for the umpteenth time, Snape burst through the door.

Remus and Lily both fixed their eyes on him as he ran towards the worktable without even a second to catch his breath. He took off his satchel and carefully pulled out a small bottle full of a deep red liquid. As Remus got closer he read the label.

"Wha… how? Where did you get that?"

"Slughorn's private stores," Snape said distractedly.

At that reply Remus looked at the ceiling.

"Well there you have it — we'll be thrown out of school by Monday at the latest," he muttered.

Lily was wide-eyed and then after a moment frowned. "Wait a sec… what's Slughorn even doing with dragon's blood and how the hell did you know about it?"

Snape, who was racing around the worktable and getting things out, shouted, "That hardly seems important at the moment. Now do something useful and pass me that empty vial!"

Snape was right. There was time enough to worry about the rest of it later. Right now the important thing was saving Ella.

Lily looked a bit embarrassed but nonetheless turned and picked the empty vial off the shelf that Snape had requested. "Sorry — I'm just amazed he had something like this. Not to mention the fact that you got through the wards."

Lily turned back towards the work table, "Is there anything we can hel-" But Lily stopped mid-word. Severus was standing deathly still and his face looked ashen.

It was then that Remus saw a look of fear cross Snape's face. "The wards," was all he heard Snape mutter before the Slytherin darted out of the room with the speed of a flying broom.

Lily and Remus looked at each other.

"What did he say about wards?" Lily asked.

Remus shrugged, "I don't know."

As Remus walked the length of the worktable he noticed a piece of parchment next to Snape's satchel. It was the Marauder's Map. Remus picked it up and was about to put it away when he saw something that made the fearful lump in his throat grow. According to the map, Snape was moving fast and already running down the fourth floor corridor towards the dungeons — where Filch was currently lurking.

XXXXXXXXXX

Severus ran as fast as his long legs could carry him. How could he have forgotten the wards? He hadn't reset them. Wards were set up to keep people out of places they shouldn't be. But over the years the more clever students at Hogwarts had figured out how to get past wards the professors had put up on restricted areas. Due to this, in more recent years the wards were updated with a type of fail-safe. If the wards weren't reset after they had been taken down within a certain amount of time, they would create a loud noise heard throughout the castle that the wards had been breached.

Severus ticked through the time in his head. He probably had an hour after he had taken the wards down. But he had spent so much time in the stores and then running back up to the seventh floor that his time was nearly up. The worse bit was that once he got to the dungeons he would be taking stabs in the dark trying to reset the wards. He had only ever seen Slughorn take them down — not reset them.

He continued to run and his thoughts jumped back to Ella as he reached the main floor. If he'd guessed correctly, she might be able to hang on a little longer, but he needed to get back as soon as possible.

Severus descended the steps that led down to the dungeons for the second time that night. He started to run down the long corridor but stopped suddenly. The torches had been put out hours ago, but even in the darkness he could just make out the familiar glow of a pair of eyes. The eyes got closer and soon the shape of Mrs. Norris, Filch's cat, became clear. Severus' blood ran cold as the cat meowed and glared up at him. But then the cat seemed focused on something else and scampered past him, back toward the direction that he had just come from. That was when he heard it — footsteps.

Severus flattened himself against the wall, and took deep breaths. Suddenly, a voice called out just a few yards away: "Mrs. Norris, where have you got to?"

End Chapter Twelve


	13. Fix The Broken: Part II

Ch.13 Fix The Broken: Part II

Severus felt the blood freeze within his veins. He heard Filch's footsteps echo through the hallway as they drew closer and closer to him.

All Filch would need to do was round the corner and that would be it. The inevitable consequences ran through Snape's head. Filch would see him and write him up for a detention due to being out past curfew. But while writing him up the wards would sound off the alarm and the he would be caught. Slughorn and Dumbledore would be called to find if anything was missing. Eventually they would discover the dragon's blood had been stolen, he would be expelled, and he'd lose his apprenticeship. What's more, even if they managed to save Ella in time she would also be exposed. Severus clenched his eyes shut as he became hypnotized by the footsteps. He held his breath — afraid that Filch would hear it. But then the sound of his heart pounding rang through his ears. His whole body tensed a little more with each thump. Then everything stopped because Filch's footsteps had ceased just on the corner where Snape had plastered himself to the wall.

_This is it. Just one more step and I'm caught._

His body calmed as he accepted this outcome and his head dropped.

_Goodbye future. _

But then… nothing.

A second passed and then another. Yet Filch stood still.

Severus opened his eyes — not even realizing he had closed them. He cautiously stole a glance at the corner. He could actually see the partial figure of Filch standing at the turn-off, but the figure was stopped. That was when he heard it. In the distance there was the smallest sound; so subtle that Severus would have missed it had it not been continuous. It sounded like… running? Filch appeared to have the same idea as well because the caretaker slowly moved away from the corner and started heading in the direction of the noise.

Severus moved toward the corner and peered around. Filch was making his way down the main corridor so Severus still couldn't get out of the dungeons unseen. As he began to go through all the other possibilities of the situation, he was pulled out of his reverie by the sound of shattering glass. Then Filch's footsteps were running further from Severus and closer toward the sound.

Severus didn't waste any time — he saw Filch already on the other end of the corridor and he ran in the same direction — occasionally stopping in small entryways to make sure Filch didn't see him from behind. His entire objective had now changed: get out of the dungeons unseen. Filch moved purposefully down a smaller corridor that led off from the main one. Severus felt a measure of relief; he might actually have a shot at this.

As he looked out of the entryway, he heard Filch speak.

"Well, well, well, looks as though I've caught meself a Gryffindor breaking curfew."

Severus frowned as he drew near to passing the corridor.

_It can't be._

Severus heard more movement and he slowly looked down the small hallway in which Filch had headed. There was Filch glaring at Lupin who was wearing one shoe and standing by a pile of shards that looked as if they might have previously been in the shape of a vase.

"I'll be looking forward to reporting this lit-ul incident to Professor McGonagall."

Lupin looked at the other end of the corridor and caught Severus' eye. He gave Severus a look that seemed to shout, "Get the hell out of here!"

Severus gave him a small nod and quickly got to the other side of the corridor entrance. He was nearly home free when he heard Filch say, "Now back to Gryffindor Tower Mr. Lupin. Let's go!" Severus could hear Lupin stalling for time.

Severus reached the main floor and immediately dashed for the stairs. But as he made it past the Great Hall… the dreaded event occurred. A high-pitched shrieking sound shattered any elation Severus felt at having escaped Filch. The alarm on the wards had finally gone off. Severus increased his pace as he made it to the top of the first floor then made a beeline for a suit of armor and hid behind it. The professors would be on their way to the dungeons soon enough to investigate who had trespassed into Slughorn's private stores. He was breathing hard as he heard the voices of Professor Flitwick and Professor Vector rush by. A few minutes later McGonagall passed as well. Severus waited a full ten minutes before emerging from his hiding spot. Then after looking around to make sure the coast was clear he bolted into another run and this time didn't stop until he reached the 7th floor.

XXXXXXXXXX

When Severus walked into the Room of Requirement Lily jumped to her feet, looking relieved to see him.

"I see Remus made it in time."

Severus let out a heavy sigh and nodded his head. He laid his satchel on the table and carefully removed the vial of dragon's blood.

Lily looked scared as she realized that Severus hadn't made it back to Slughorn's private stores. But before she had time to panic Severus said sternly, "We'll worry about it later. Right now we need to finish what we started." Lily blinked a few times before nodding in agreement.

"What do you need?" Lily asked in a very business-like manner.

Severus turned to the table and began to organize what he would require. "I need you to make up the rest of the components for the potion. The dragon's blood will have to be mixed in last and I will need to dilute it enough so that it doesn't kill her. That's going to be the hardest bit."

Severus wrote down the steps Lily would need to follow to complete her part, then sent her to the other side of the worktable. As soon as Lily started working, Severus allowed himself one last deep breath and a glance at Ella. Then he set in on what would be the most important potion he had ever created. Oh, how he hoped this would work.

XXXXXXXXXX

An hour later Lupin walked into the Room of Requirement. "Well... the chase is on. They will start going through Slughorn's inventory first thing tomorrow to determine if anything has been taken."

Severus and Lily tried to not look concerned but failed. "I'm happy they don't suspect you... do they… suspect you?"

Lupin actually smirked a little. "Filch was trying to pin it on me... what with me being the only one in the dungeons when the wards went off. But Dumbledore pointed out the time limit between the wards being taken down and the alarm actually sounding. So, basically it could have been anyone."

Lily nodded her head at this. "I'm amazed McGonagall didn't escort you back to the tower to make sure you stay put."

Lupin collapsed into one of the chairs. "Considering the incident at hand... she has more important things to worry about then making sure I get back to bed."

Lily looked down at Remus' socked foot. "And... what happened to your shoe?"

Remus looked at towards Severus, "Snape here's lucky that transfiguration is my best subject. Unfortunately I didn't have much handy, so I had to use what I had."

Severus scowled at Lupin, "Or one might say, _Ella's_ lucky that you managed to keep me from getting caught so I could help her."

"Maybe you should actually save her first before calling her lucky." Both boys shared a solemn look before Severus returned his gaze to the workstation. Fifteen minutes later Lily announced she had completed her part of the potion. Soon after, Snape stated the dragon's blood was ready.

No one spoke as Severus and Lily carefully mixed the dragon's blood with the rest of the potion. An hour spent on a potion seems like hardly any time at all — this is a fact. However, an hour dedicated to diluting one specimen is tedious work and Severus had used every precious second to complete this task. If he was only slightly off, the dragon's blood would kill Ella.

"This is not going to be easy. Even in diluted form, dragon's blood can be acidic to human tissue. The potion Lily made will protect the rest of Ella's body from being scarred but the mouth and throat is much more sensitive. We're going to need to try and pour this directly down Ella's throat to keep from burning her tongue off." Lupin and Lily went wide-eyed at this information.

"Well, considering this might end up killing her, I suppose that's a small detail in the grand scheme of things," Lupin said flatly.

Severus muttered a levitation spell that caused Ella's body to come to a sitting position. Lily and Remus then carefully helped hold her head back so her face was looking up at the ceiling. Once this was accomplished, Severus carefully opened her mouth until he could see the back of her throat. With steady hands he poured the potion into her mouth — all the while silently praying that she would wake up after this.

A second or two passed. Suddenly Severus noticed a section on the side of her throat was becoming a bright shade of red. "Fuck," he muttered as the last few drops of the potion cascaded into Ella's throat. "Evans, go grab some burn paste — quick!"

Severus held the back of Ella's head while Lily ran back to the workstation.

"What's happened?!" said Lupin, obviously scared.

"The potion was catching a bit on the side of her throat and didn't go down fast enough."

Lily returned with the burn paste.

"Why burn paste?" Remus asked.

"It's the only thing thick enough to stay on her throat long enough to heal the area," Lily answered as she made several movements with her wand and used another levitation spell to apply the salve to the affected area.

Once she finished she motioned to the boys to gently lay Ella down. The trio stepped back from the bed and looked at Ella's still form. "Now all we can do is wait," Severus said.

All three seventh years said nothing as several comfortable chairs appeared around the bed.

XXXXXXXXXXX

An hour later Ella had still not woken and the two Gryffindors had reluctantly succumbed to their exhaustion. Severus on the other hand was determined to keep an eye on Ella and had busied himself with the task of cleaning up the worktable. The task was pointless, considering that the Room of Requirement generally took care of things like this, but perhaps this was an instance where the room knew what he needed better than he did.

After having cleaned up everything he could, Severus continued to distract himself by checking Ella's vitals every five minutes to see if any progress or further damage had been made.

After pacing back and forth and for a good hour Severus noticed the room had provided him with a window. He looked out of it and could see the very first glimpses of sun beginning to peek over the horizon. In a couple hours the rest of the castle would be waking up.

He leaned back against the window, enjoying the sensation of the cool glass. On any other occasion he would have savored the silence and these moments he had to himself… especially after such an ordeal. Today, however, was not one of those times.

He surveyed the two Gryffindors snoring softly as he tried not to look back at the unconscious brunette for the hundredth time. But there he was once again lost in thought as he watched her.

"How could you have been so stupid?" he muttered. Silence.

Through the course of the last few hours Severus had been trying to figure out where Ella had been getting the potion. He was quite sure she hadn't left Hogwarts in the last few weeks and something like Le` Sagesse was too risky to send by owl. So, he was quite certain that she had procured it from someone at the school. Considering how powerful the potion was and how difficult it was to obtain curvind tree sap, Severus almost didn't believe it could have been a student. But he knew it had to be. And no matter how many times he turned it over in his head, all things pointed to one possibility — Russel Sipes.

Most people never thought too much of Sipes. The ones that knew where to look would turn to him for things that were illegal or not allowed on school grounds. Yet despite how obviously clever one would have to be to contrive most of these illegal substances, people simply didn't look at him like that. Russel Sipes was possibly the most underestimated person of the seventh year class and yet he was also one of the smartest. These two factors probably kept him in business and out of suspicion's way. However, Severus had seen Dumbledore give Sipes a discerning look on more than one occasion. Severus let out a small breath.

_Yes, Sipes could pull this off. _

Severus knew he would probably never figure out how Sipes got his hands on curvind tree sap, but it didn't really matter.

_So, did he just screw up the level of concentration on the potion?_

As if to answer his own question, Severus shook his head.

_Sipes had been making the stuff for Ella for at least a week and he obviously had it right all the other times. But it was possible he got sloppy._

Even as Severus considered the possibility some instinct told him otherwise.

_Why would Sipes do it?_

If Russel Sipes was anything it was self-serving. Unlike all his other housemates, Sipes lived in a world where things were gray, rather than black and white. He didn't care about house lines or social standing. All he cared about was money. Making Ella brain-dead would have lost him a customer.

So on the chance that what happened to Ella wasn't careless potions making…

"Someone else enlisted Sipes to poison Ella," Severus said aloud.

But Severus couldn't be sure; there simply wasn't enough evidence. Even if there was more implication of cruel intent there was no way to figure out who was in on it. Severus could easily see half of the Slytherin quidditch team willing to go to these lengths not to mention Ella had a number of enemies in Slytherin who felt she didn't have the right to be in the magical world due to her heritage.

The possibilities were endless.

Severus looked at Ella once more and reflected on the lengths she had gone to to get through this upcoming potions exam. Now she wouldn't only be back where she started, she would be behind… if she woke up.

Then he felt it: the twinges of guilt that had been periodically hitting him for the last two weeks. His stomach clenched and he sensed a small lump in the back of his throat. As soon as he realized what was happening he quickly made his way back to Ella's bed to check her vitals, anxious to participate in some action, any action to keep him from thinking.

Once again her vitals were unchanged. But this time as he looked over her he spotted a small vertical line on the side of her throat. It was very thin but still noticeable. The burn from earlier must have been worse than he'd thought; it had managed to cut so deep that a scar was noticeable on her neck.

Without even thinking he reached out and slowly ran his finger over it. He was taken aback by this gesture and decided to walk back toward the window. He tried to make out the trees in the still darkened forest as a way to focus on something else, but soon the feelings of responsibility and guilt crept up once more and made themselves known.

_This isn't my fault… this isn't my fault… this isn't my fault._

Severus turned this thought over in his head again and again, willing it to be true. But soon his mind filled with memories of the last few weeks.

There she was in the library drunk and angry — asking him what he would have done had her friends not shown up in time to save her from Malfoy. Then she was leaning on one of the outside fences of the Quidditch pitch, staring up at him as he made his victory lap. Then she was just running her normal routine, but looking increasingly exhausted with every passing day as they walked into potions class. Then she was letting her head fall as Slughorn passing back her failed quiz and him simply not saying anything or offering any help. The next image was of her outdoing Slughorn and him knowing something wasn't right. Then finally Lupin and Evans showing up with her unconscious and in serious danger.

But then… there he was picking her up and carrying her to a bed. Him… finding out what she'd taken and trying to find a way to neutralize it. Him… sneaking into Slughorn's private stores on a hunch that there might be dragon's blood there for him to steal and use. Him… making a potion he wasn't sure would work in order to save her or kill her.

It hit him. His eyes widened for a moment in surprised realization, only for him to shut them in defeat. There was a small thump as he let his head swing down and lean against the glass. It remained there lost in thought and agony for a few moments until he heard something behind him.

Severus turned and looked towards Ella; he watched as she rolled her head from one side to the other. For a minute he didn't think he was really seeing this happen… but then she opened her mouth and muttered, "Need to get to quiddith practice…"

Severus was at her side instantly. He slowly placed a hand on her forehead — her fever was completely gone! Severus took out his wand and ran it over her body to check her vitals. Everything was normal; her brain had slowed back down to a safe pace. The feeling of anguish and disbelief that had just filled Severus was momentarily overcome by a sense of relief. He watched her for another moment or two as she continued to peacefully dream about quidditch.

As he put his wand back in his pocket his fingertips brushed her hand slightly, and he was once again filled with the thoughts he had been experiencing only several minutes before. The only emotion that seemed to cut through all the other suffocating thoughts in his mind… was a need to get out.

Severus tore his eyes away from Ella and quickly walked across the room to pack his things. He put his books and parchment from earlier into his satchel before carefully placing the vial of dragon's blood in a side pocket. After a moment or so he found his tie near the fireplace and shoved it into his bag before throwing his robe on. Just as he was about to turn the doorknob… he felt a hand on his shoulder.

Severus whipped around in surprise. Lupin didn't remove his hand as he roughly asked, "Where the hell are you going?" Severus shook Lupin's hand off and coldly responded, "None of your bloody business."

"You're just going to leave before you know she's okay?"

Snape's hard look softened slightly. "She's going to be all right."

"But how do you…" Lupin was cut off. Almost as if on cue Ella rolled onto her side — sound asleep.

"She started stirring a few minutes ago — she even said something in her sleep. I checked her vitals and her brain activity; everything is back to normal."

For a moment Lupin was silent. Then he glanced back at Ella and his face broke into the widest grin. Severus was unnerved by the look of gratitude Lupin gave him.

"Thank you," Lupin said. "Really, thank you."

Severus ignored his appreciative words.

"Let her sleep for a while. Her body has been through a lot."

Lupin nodded enthusiastically, "Yeah, of course."

Severus nodded then made his way for the door. This snapped Lupin out of his happy reverie. "Wait… you don't want to be here when she wakes up?"

Severus gave him a fierce, "No."

Lupin frowned, "So, you don't want Ella to know that you saved her life?"

"No."

"But, why?"

"That hardly concerns you."

"Well while you're making your getaway, any requests on what exactly you would like me to tell her?"

Severus was becoming impatient now. "I don't bloody care what you tell her! Tell her you and Evans saved her sorry ass… despite how unlikely _that_ seems."

Lupin paused a moment. "I don't get you Snape."

"Yes, well, let's spare your simple mind from such complexities."

"You're really not going to tell her? Or let us?"

Severus narrowed his eyes at Lupin — completely tired of this conversation.

"I did a lot tonight that included putting myself on the line. I'm not asking for thanks or anything else… just that you forget I was even here. Don't tell her."

Lupin had a sad sort of glazed look in his eye as he stared at the Slytherin. Then he nodded his head in agreement, turned to take another peek at Ella, and when he looked back up… Severus was gone.

XXXXXXXXXX

The dormitory door slammed shut and Severus fell back against it. He let out a long breath that he hadn't realized he'd been holding. He looked around in relief.

_Sanctuary._

The constricted feeling on his chest had disappeared and the knots in his stomach had gone as well. He was happy to have only his own company to keep, but his thoughts were still back on the room he had just fled. Inside… he was still panicking.

He stood straight once more and marched across the room, throwing off his robe and putting his satchel down as he went.

He couldn't do this anymore. For the last few weeks he hadn't spoken to her, been in contact with her… as far as he was concerned they were out of each others' lives. But despite this, he had been absolutely tormented by her. He'd been made to feel guilty as he watched her fail in potions, at how drained she constantly looked.

Now, when he found that she had sunk to something as stupid as trying to enhance her mind with a very risky potion — he was somehow made to feel responsible!

_No, enough is enough. I need to be rid of her!_

His mind was turning with ideas after rationalizations. Then after a second it hit him like a bolt of lightning. He hadn't finished his end of their bargain. He had gotten where he needed to be and she was left to struggle — albeit by her own pride. But now he knew what he needed to do. He took out his wand and with a few flicks numerous potions texts and notes flew from his bookshelves; they landed and organized themselves neatly on top of his desk. Severus took out a quill and began to write. It was time he fulfilled his end of the bargain.

XXXXXXXXXX

Ella sat in the cushioned bench of the large bay window the Room of Requirement had provided for her. It had been several hours since she'd finally woken up. Although her body still felt woozy, her mind was restless.

Lily and Remus were currently catching up on sleep in two twin-sized beds the room had provided. They had fretted over her for much of the morning and even though it became apparent how much sleep they needed, they refused to retire to the dorm and leave her alone.

Ella smirked as she heard Lily let out a soft snore. If they were still awake she would have been chastised for being out of bed. But it was sunny outside and she was enjoying the quiet as she looked over the grounds. After all the panic and sleep she was happy to have some peace so that she could reflect on the events of her awakening...

_She rolled onto her back as she slowly felt consciousness seeping into her. She willed her eyes to open -- and instantly regretted the action. Wherever she was it was blinding with sun. After a second she slowly opened her eyes again. She heard a slight murmur of conversation and she caught sight of Lily and Remus in the far corner of the room talking in hushed tones. She tried to sit up and was shocked to find it very difficult. Her entire body felt heavy. The movement alerted Remus and Lily._

_"Ella!" Remus exclaimed. _

_The two gryffindors rushed to her side, obviously excited. _

_"How are you feeling?" Lily asked. Ella let out a small groan, "What the hell happened?" Remus and Lily looked at each other, obviously having a silent conversation which she was not privy to. Remus was finally the one to speak._

_"Ella, what's the last thing you remember?"_

_She thought for a moment. "Transfiguration class. We were learning how to transfigure something antique into something new."_

_Remus let out a sigh, but didn't seem surprised by this information. Lily looked concerned._

_After a moment Ella finally asked, "What is it?"_

_Remus was the one to respond, "Ella... it has been a long, long night."_

Ella focused outside once more. Rain clouds had moved in and soon raindrops started to pelt the window. That was how they began to tell her of everything that had occurred. How they had found her and discovered she'd been taking a potion to help her for the exam. She had been so embarrassed when she realized they found out. They quickly moved on to explain how Lily had managed to save her by making a healing potion that was used in the Great War as a way to quickly heal the wounded. She had apparently picked it up from her medicinal potions course last year. Good old Lily.

As she looked out the window, she caught sight of her reflection in the glass and stared at the small scar on her neck — proof that the night before had really happened. Lily had said that there may be a way to get rid of it, but somehow the idea of making it go away didn't seem right.

She absently ran a finger over the scar. She had been so desperate to get through potions and she had nearly lost everything. She leaned back against the small nook, feeling weary again.

_I'm right back where I started and worse for the wear. How could I have been so stupid? _

Ella cast one last look out the window before getting out of the nook and climbing back into bed. She would sleep for the rest of the day.

XXXXXXXXXX

Severus scrawled the last sentence onto the now thick stack of notes. He put down his quill and leaned back into his chair. He felt some muscles strain from having been in the same position for so long. Severus flipped through the parchment — making sure everything was there. His spiky, cramped writing filled nearly every inch of every page. This fact gave him pause for a moment.

_My handwriting…_

He looked at the parchment, scowling. Then a mischievous smirk reached his lips. He held his wand over the stock and muttered an incantation. The handwriting on the parchment changed to a familiar, neater style. After checking all the pages one last time to make sure they had all conformed to the handwriting change, Severus directed his attention at the fireplace.

His wand moved in a swish-flick, then a semi-circle, and the flames in the fireplace roared green. It was handy knowing how to get around the floo network without floo powder. Unfortunately the floo was limited only to certain parts of the castle. "Kitchens," Severus stated after stepping into the fireplace.

A house elf approached Severus, "How may we help, Sir?" Severus looked around the kitchen. "Oh, I was looking for Beebee," he said.

If the house elf was curious about the request, it didn't show. "Just a moment please."

A moment later Beebee hurried into the room. "Mister Snape, how can I help?" Severus was slightly uncomfortable; Beebee had always been nice enough to bring him meals when he worked late in the Room or Requirement or the library, even when he didn't ask her to, but he had never sought her out for anything else.

"Hello Beebee… Ella Brady left these behind in the library and I can't find her. Do you mind leaving them on her desk in her dormitory?"

Beebee took the stack of parchment and said, "Of course Mr. Snape. I know how hard she's been studying. She probably needs them."

Snape nodded, "Thank you Beebee. He stepped back into the fireplace and flooed back to his dorm.

_Well, that's taken care of…_

Severus walked over towards his satchel and carefully withdrew the vial of dragon's blood. He weighed the specimen in his palm.

_Now what shall I do about you…?_

End Chapter Thirteen

**Hope you guys liked the latest chapter. I do put a lot of work into this story so feedback is both encouraged and appreciated. Next installment will be coming soon!**


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